Source: Reuters
Saudi Arabia has extended COVID-19 restrictions for another 20 days to curb the threat of the second wave of the pandemic, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported on Sunday. The extended precautionary measures, initially imposed by the Interior Ministry on February 4th, will take effect on Sunday (February 14th) at 10 PM local time.
The restrictions include the closure of cinemas, shopping malls, gyms, sports centres, other entertainments and suspension of events for 20 days. Social gatherings should be limited to not more than 20 people. Dine-in at restaurants or cafes are also suspended and will be limited to delivery services.
In case of events, meetings, gatherings, parties and funerals, the public must adhere to the precautionary measures imposed earlier. All the health preventive protocols issued by the Ministry of Interior are subject to continuous evaluation by the competent authorities.
The decision is part of the recommendation of the concerned authorities to assess the Covid outbreak in the Kingdom.
The Saudi government had suspended flights to 20 countries for two weeks on February 3rd. The Kingdom's Interior Ministry also extended the reopening of its borders from March 31st to May 17th.