Saudi Arabia said on Friday it is extending its ban on international flights until the middle of May amid increasing concerns over the spread of new strains of coronavirus around the world.
In a statement carried by Saudi Press Agency, the country’s interior ministry said it was delaying the reopening of its land and sea ports until May 17.
The Ministry of Health added that the move had also been prompted by a delay to promised deliveries of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine, some innoculation appointments to be rescheduled.
It said it was crucial to attain high community immunity rates in the kingdom before allowing international travel because of the second wave of pandemic in many countries.
Earlier this month, the Gulf kingdom said it had hoped to lift the ban on international travel on March 31.
It had halted international flights and suspended entry through its land and sea ports after a new fast-spreading strain of coronavirus appeared in Britain.
Last month, Saudi Arabia kicked off a three-phase Covid-19 vaccination programme, after the first shipments of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine arrived in the kingdom.
Saudi Arabia has so far recorded more than 367,000 coronavirus cases, including more than 6,300 deaths – the highest among the Gulf Arab states but the kingdom has also reported a high recovery rate, with over 358,000 people recovering from the virus.
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