ISLAMABAD, MAY 25 (DNA) – Iraq has prohibited the entry of Pakistani and Indian nationals into its territory through air and land from Tuesday (today) until further notice amid an uptick in coronavirus cases.

The Iraqi government has placed an entry ban on travellers from several countries including Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Brazil, Colombia and Bahrain. The new list was issued by Iraq’s federal government on May 24.

As per the new guidelines, from Tuesday the passengers from Pakistan and seven other countries would not enter into Iraqi territory due to the high cases of the mutated coronavirus.

Recently, a Canadian ban on direct passenger flights from India and Pakistan after increased Covid-19 cases were detected in travellers arriving from these countries was extended Friday until June 21.

The measure, first announced on April 22, was set to expire Saturday. “Our battle against Covid-19 continues,” Transportation Minister Omar Alghabra told a news conference.

 “On April 22 Transport Canada issued a notice to ban all direct commercial and private passenger flights from India and Pakistan for 30 days based on public health advice to reduce the importation risk of Covid-19 and its variants,” he said. “We are now extending this measure to June 21.”

The minister noted a “significant reduction” in the number of positive Covid-19 cases arriving on international flights of late. But “based on public health advice,” he said, “this is not the right time to consider loosening any border control measures.” = DNA

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