Oman Extends Land Border Closure by a Week Due to Pandemic

General view of old Muscat, Oman, January 12, 2020. REUTERS/Christopher Pike/Files
General view of old Muscat, Oman, January 12, 2020. REUTERS/Christopher Pike/Files
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Oman Extends Land Border Closure by a Week Due to Pandemic

General view of old Muscat, Oman, January 12, 2020. REUTERS/Christopher Pike/Files
General view of old Muscat, Oman, January 12, 2020. REUTERS/Christopher Pike/Files

Oman will extend the closure of its land borders for another week, until Feb. 8, to curb the spread of the coronavirus, state TV said on Sunday, citing a decision by the Gulf state’s coronavirus emergency committee.

The borders were closed on Jan. 19 because of concerns about a new coronavirus variant, a measure that was extended last week.

Meanwhile, Oman received on Sunday 100,000 doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, according to the country’s official Oman VS COVID19 Twitter account dedicated to the efforts of countering the coronavirus.

The doses were “provided by the Republic of India, produced by the Serum Institute of India,” according to the statement.

Over 27,000 people have received the first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and 7,992 received the second dose, the Times of Oman reported, citing Oman’s Ministry of Health.

Oman’s Supreme Committee last week advised the country’s citizens and residents to avoid traveling abroad, except in cases of emergency.



Israeli Military Says it Struck Hamas Member in Southern Syria

FILE PHOTO: A cat stands next to a damaged telephone booth in Hamidiyeh district in the central city of Homs July 1, 2012. REUTERS/Yazen Homsy/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A cat stands next to a damaged telephone booth in Hamidiyeh district in the central city of Homs July 1, 2012. REUTERS/Yazen Homsy/File Photo
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Israeli Military Says it Struck Hamas Member in Southern Syria

FILE PHOTO: A cat stands next to a damaged telephone booth in Hamidiyeh district in the central city of Homs July 1, 2012. REUTERS/Yazen Homsy/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A cat stands next to a damaged telephone booth in Hamidiyeh district in the central city of Homs July 1, 2012. REUTERS/Yazen Homsy/File Photo

The Israeli military said on Sunday that it struck a Hamas member in southern Syria's Mazraat Beit Jin, days after Israel carried out its first airstrikes in the country in nearly a month.

Hamas did not immediately comment on the strike.

Israel said on Tuesday it hit weapons belonging to the government in retaliation for the firing of two projectiles towards Israel for the first time under the country's new leadership. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz held Syria's President Ahmed al-Sharaa accountable.

Damascus in response said reports of the shelling were unverified, reiterating that Syria does not pose a threat to any regional party.

A little known group named "Martyr Muhammad Deif Brigades," an apparent reference to Hamas' military leader who was killed in an Israeli strike in 2024, reportedly claimed responsibility for the shelling. Reuters, however, could not independently verify the claim.

Israel and Syria have recently engaged in direct talks to calm tensions, marking a significant development in ties between states that have been on opposite sides of conflict in the Middle East for decade.