Abu Dhabi Will Only Allow Vaccinated People in Some Public Spaces from Aug 20

An Emirati man, wearing a protective mask, walks at al-Barsha Health Center in the Gulf Emirate of Dubai on December 24, 2020. GIUSEPPE CACACE | AFP via Getty Images
An Emirati man, wearing a protective mask, walks at al-Barsha Health Center in the Gulf Emirate of Dubai on December 24, 2020. GIUSEPPE CACACE | AFP via Getty Images
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Abu Dhabi Will Only Allow Vaccinated People in Some Public Spaces from Aug 20

An Emirati man, wearing a protective mask, walks at al-Barsha Health Center in the Gulf Emirate of Dubai on December 24, 2020. GIUSEPPE CACACE | AFP via Getty Images
An Emirati man, wearing a protective mask, walks at al-Barsha Health Center in the Gulf Emirate of Dubai on December 24, 2020. GIUSEPPE CACACE | AFP via Getty Images

Abu Dhabi will only allow vaccinated people in some public spaces, including schools, restaurants, and shopping centers, from August 20, in efforts to fight the pandemic.

The decision doesn’t apply to those who are unvaccinated because of an exemption, nor to children aged 15 and below.

The list of places include shopping centres, restaurants, gyms, museums, resorts, and all other retail outlets, except those selling essential goods such as supermarkets and pharmacies.

Abu Dhabi Emergency, Crisis and Disasters Committee said Monday that over 93 percent of the target group in Abu Dhabi have already been vaccinated.

The Committee approved earlier a color-coded system on its health app which details testing and vaccination history.

Those who have received their second dose will appear in green on the app; however, they are required to do a PCR test monthly in order to maintain the green light for 30 days.

Those who are unvaccinated will appear in green for three days only after getting a negative PCR test.

The UAE has so far recorded more than 631,000 cases, including 1,807 deaths.

The latest restrictions come as Gulf countries, including Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, move towards more stringent restrictions on those who have not been inoculated.

The UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention on Tuesday reported 2,184 new cases, along with 2,105 recoveries and 5 deaths.

The new cases were detected after conducting 281,000 tests.

The total number of cases in UAE as of June 29 reached 631,160, while the total number of recoveries stood at 609,711.

Also, Kuwait has said it will only allow fully vaccinated foreigners to enter the country and only its inoculated citizens will be allowed to travel abroad from August 1.

In Oman, People aged 18 and above will be eligible for COVID vaccines in all governorates, Oman’s Ministry of Health (MoH) announced on Tuesday.

The wider coverage takes effect on Sunday, the health ministry said in a statement on state media. Previously, people over 45 had been eligible for COVID shots, alongside special categories such as frontline workers and pregnant women.

Media reports have said recently that hospitals nationwide were facing a sharp rise in infections. The country has recorded 266,536 cases and 3,056 deaths in total.

By mid-April, Oman had given at least one dose to around 5 percent of the eligible population. This had increased to 24 percent by June 26, according to health ministry data.

Data shows 854,274 doses have been given in the country of around 4.5 million people.



UN Supports Saudi-Led Calls for Ceasefire in the Middle East

Stephane Dujarric (AFP)
Stephane Dujarric (AFP)
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UN Supports Saudi-Led Calls for Ceasefire in the Middle East

Stephane Dujarric (AFP)
Stephane Dujarric (AFP)

The United Nations reaffirmed its unwavering support for efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Palestine, Lebanon, and all conflict zones across the Middle East, following the calls made at the Extraordinary Arab and Islamic Summit held in Riyadh on Monday.
UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) that the international organization remains committed to supporting all efforts aimed at de-escalating the situation in the region. This includes working towards a ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon, as well as the unconditional release of all hostages in Gaza, as reported by SPA on Wednesday.
He emphasized that UN Secretary-General António Guterres continues to stress the importance of ending the Israeli occupation and implementing the two-state solution, which is viewed as a fair and lasting resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The Arab and Islamic Summit was convened at the initiative of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and was chaired by Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.