Morocco on Sunday announced that it will halt incoming passenger flights for two weeks due to the growing concerns over a new, heavily mutated variant of the coronavirus termed 'Omicron'.
A government committee assigned with the task of supervising the country’s COVID-19 response informed in a statement that the measure would come into effect from Monday and would be assessed regularly to make “adjustments if necessary”.
“The decision has been taken because of the quick spread of the new COVID variant, Omicron, namely in Europe and Africa, and in order … to protect the health of Moroccan citizens,” it said.
The development came hours after Israel announced it would be shutting its borders for foreign tourists from Sunday evening in the wake of growing concerns around the new variant.
The strain was first detected in South Africa, with infections recorded in several countries, forcing nations to reimpose travel restriction that many had hoped would be a thing of the past nwo.
Morocco, whose economy is heavily reliant on tourism, had earlier on Friday announced a ban on entry to travellers from South Africa and six other African countries.
It had already announced to suspend flights to and from France owing to a spike in coronavirus cases in Europe.
With Agency Inputs
