Emirates airlines announced it was temporarily suspending its flights from Pakistan after passengers who transited through Dubai tested positive for COVID-19.
Emirate’s spokeswoman announced that following the announcement of positive coronavirus cases in Hong Kong “relating to certain passengers who traveled on our flights,” Emirates has taken the decision to temporarily suspend passenger services from Pakistan as of June 24.
“We are coordinating closely with the various authorities and will review and implement any required additional measures to satisfy all parties before we resume services from Pakistan,” she said.
The spokeswoman asserted that the safety of the airline’s crew, customers, and communities remains Emirate’s top priority.
The airline has put in place “a comprehensive set of measures at every step of the customer journey on the ground and in the air to minimize the risk of infection spread”.
Meanwhile, UAE’s health authorities announced they have launched the world’s first phase III clinical trial of a COVID-19 inactivated vaccine.
UAE signed a clinical cooperation agreement between China National Biotec Group (CNBG) and Group 42 (G42), the Abu Dhabi based artificial intelligence and cloud computing company.
G42 will lead the clinical trial operations in the UAE under the supervision of the Department of Health of Abu Dhabi.
UAE’s Minister of Health and Prevention Abdul Rahman al-Owais said that nations need to work in close partnership between the government and private sectors to create new initiatives, launch programs, develop policies, drive rigorous research, and develop capacity.
Owais asserted that UAE welcomes all contributions by countries of the world, innovative entities, and creative individuals who are committed to creating opportunities for joint collaboration towards confronting the threat of COVID-19 and defeating this global pandemic.
The clinical trial is divided into three phases. The first phase mainly looks into the safety of the vaccine, while the second phase evaluates immunogenicity and explores the immunization process in a limited number of individuals.
The final stage considers the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine in a larger population sample.
If a vaccine is confirmed safe and effective throughout the entire clinical trial process, the test is considered successful, and the vaccine enters into the large-scale manufacturing phase.
The inactivated vaccine already passed phases one and two clinical trials without showing any serious adverse reactions, with 100 percent of the volunteers generating antibodies after two doses.
