In a recent travel update, the United Arab Emirates has announced the ban on citizens who are not vaccinated against coronavirus. This will be in place starting January 10. The National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority (NCEMA) of the UAE also mentioned that the vaccinated citizens are further required to take booster shots as per the country’s covid protocol.
The Arab nation will now only allow individuals medically exempted from taking the Covid-19 vaccine, humanitarian cases, and those traveling for medical and treatment purposes.
“Ban on Travel on UAE citizens unvaccinated with #Covid19 vaccine, starting January 10, 2022, with a requirement to obtain the booster dose for the fully vaccinated,” “With an exemption for medically exempted from taking the vaccine, humanitarian & treatment cases.” Said NCEMA on twitter.
This travel ban has been announced amid the steep rise of coronavirus cases driven by the highly contagious Omicron variant, reported in Europe and the United States. This surge in infections has also resulted in the cancellation of hundreds of domestic and international flights.
There has been reported that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s proposed visit to the UAE in January has been put off because of concerns over the rapid spread of the Omicron variant in the country. While no official announcement regarding the visit was made by any of the two countries, it was expected that PM Modi would have been in the UAE on January 5-6.