Daily Times

Saudi government has decided to impose a 21-day curfew in the country starting from today afternoon in order to thwart the spread of the coronavirus.

According to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), a relevant declaration was signed by Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the curfew will be imposed for 21-day. Saudi Arabia reported more than 500 confirmed coronavirus cases in the kingdom.

The UAE, home to the world’s busiest international airport is suspending all passenger and transit flights for two weeks.

The country’s emergency and crisis management body and its Civil Aviation Authority said in a statement the decision to stop all commercial flights will take effect in 48 hours.

Dubai’s famous shopping malls will also close “for a renewable period of two weeks”.

Earlier, state media reported that Saudi Arabia was going to halt passenger travel on domestic flights, buses, and trains, as well as taxi services for two weeks in order to put off the spread of COVID-19.

In Europe, Italy has moved to stop all travel within the country, as more than 5,400 people have died in the country from COVID-19, the illness caused by the virus.

Spain, the second-worst affected country in Europe, plans to extend a state of emergency until April 11, after recording more than 1,700 deaths.

Moreover, confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany has risen to 22,672 and 86 people have died from the disease, a tally by public health agency Robert Koch Institute (RKI) showed.

That compares with 18,610 cases and 55 deaths the day before on Sunday, when RKI warned that the actual number was likely higher as not all local health authorities had submitted their figures over the weekend.