The United Arab Emirates can simply reintroduce a de facto night curfew to parts of the country if there are a large number of COVID-19 infections there, a government official said.
Read the latest updates in our coronavirus section. The Arab Gulf state saw the number of cases this week rise to more than 400 for the first time since mid-July, adding 461 infections and two deaths within 24 hours from Thursday. The national sterilization program, which included a curfew at night, could be redeployed, the spokesman for the National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority (NCEMA), Seif al-Zahri, told Emirates TV: “Yes, it’s imaginable in some spaces where we’re watching a top infection.” NCEMA, which posted an excerpt from the interview on its Twitter page on Thursday night, cannot be contacted without delay to comment on the outdoor work schedule.
On 24 June, the regional business and tourism centre lifted a national curfew in force since mid-March and advertising companies and public offerings gradually reopened. Health Minister Abdul Rahman Bin Mohammed al-Owais warned Tuesday that the number of cases could increase after an “alarming” in the past two weeks. The United Arab Emirates recorded 65,802 infections and 369 deaths. The government does not reveal where infections or deaths have occurred in the country of the seven emirates or states. The daily rate of infection fell from a peak of more than 900 at the end of May, however, the country has experienced periodic peaks since then, despite a downward end.
Read more:
WHO starts talks with Russia on COVID-19 vaccine
UAE reports 461 new COVID-19s as infections continue to rise
Egypt will soon allow the faithful to pray on Friday