ARRIVALS FROM ABROAD BOOST CORONAVIRUS CASES TO 43

KUWAIT CITY, Feb 27, (KUNA): The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday urged nationals who are currently abroad to return home. In light of a statement (made earlier) by Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs and Minister of Interior calling on citizens to abstain from travelling except for necessities, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs urged Kuwaiti nationals who are abroad to return to Kuwait.

The Foreign Ministry said the call was intended to spare them hazards of infection of coronavirus and relieve them of rapid and changing precautions for entry and departure for travelers, undertaken by states as precautions against the virus.

The Cabinet added its voice urging Kuwaitis not to travel abroad unless it was necessary in line with the state’s efforts to curb the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19). In a statement, Deputy Prime Minister, Interior Minister, and Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Anas Al-Saleh affirmed that such calls for not traveling abroad came to ensure citizens safety and prevent them from being subjected to coronavirus countermeasures implemented by other nations.

The number of coronavirus cases in Kuwait went up to 43 after 17 new cases were reported, said the Health Ministry Thursday. Assistant Secretary at the Health Ministry Dr Buthaina Al-Mudhaf told a press conference that the new number came after 1,675 swipe tests were taken from individuals returning from infected areas abroad.

The new announced cases are being quarantined in hospitals according to treatment protocols stipulated by WHO, affirming that all those infected were in good health and recovering. The government is continuing to follow up on all developments connected with the coronavirus to get better-informed and more ready to face the virus.

In a television interview late Wednesday, Minister of Health Dr Bassel Al-Sabah affirmed that the ministry was taking necessary and precautionary measures to counter COVID-19 and inform the public on a regular basis on the development locally and internationally.

On the possibility of recovery, Dr Sheikh Bassel Al-Sabah affirmed that the percentage is at around 98 percent, indicating that a small percentage of cases resulted in death mostly among the elderly, young children, and those with severe illnesses.

He reaffirmed that all necessary precautions were taken to prevent the virus from causing any harm, stressing it was important to follow official news sources in regards to the disease. Globally, there are around 81,000 cases of the coronavirus with the most recorded in the epicenter of the disease China.

Kuwaiti Civil Service Commission issued a decree to suspend fingerprint attendance system in all government agencies starting from March first, said a Kuwaiti official Thursday.

Clarified
In a press statement, head of the Kuwaiti Government communications center and its official spokesperson, Tareq Al-Mizrem clarified that new temporary measures will be issued as part of the government’s efforts to confront the emerging coronavirus.

Qatari Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani issued a decree on Wednesday ordering operating special flights to evacuate Qatari and Kuwaiti citizens from Iran. Qatari news agency (QNA) said the decision was in response to the rapid spread of the new coronavirus, in Iran.

During its extraordinary meeting held on Wednesday under the chairmanship of His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah at Seif Palace, the Cabinet has taken a package of decisions to face the novel coronavirus, COVID 19, as follows:
■ Suspending all government and private schools, colleges, universities and military colleges, and Awqaf and Islamic Affairs educational centers as of March 1, 2020 until March 12, 2020.
■ Tasking the Kuwait Supply Company with supplying local markets with sufficient quantities of face-masks to be used by citizens and expats to curb infection.
■ Assigning the Social Affairs Ministry, in coordination with the Union of Consumer Cooperative Societies, to make available all sterilization products in all cooperative societies.
■ Demanding the World Health Organization to send a specialized global medical team as soon as possible to review and assess measures taken by the state bodies to control the new coronavirus and offer their advice and recommendations.

Measures
■ Assigning Acting Minister of State for National Assembly Affairs to coordinate with the Speaker to hold a special session of the Parliament to allow the government to brief lawmakers about its measures to combat the virus.
■ Urging all citizens and expats to avoid gatherings, which may help spread infection and the epidemic, and embody constructive cooperation as well as understand measures aiming to ensure their safety and protection from the disease, and ignore rumors and untrue information circulated.

Earlier, the Cabinet had followed up the developments of the spread of the novel coronavirus after the confirmation of some cases in Kuwait and the outbreak of the disease in some other countries all over the world, mainly in the Arabian Gulf region.

The Cabinet listened to a presentation by Minister of Health Dr Sheikh Bassel Al-Sabah, head of the taskforce tasked with watching the developments of the disease, on the current implementation of the emergency plan and the precautionary measures to cure the confirmed cases in Kuwait who came from Iran. He noted that the infected cases have been moved to a well-equipped government hospital to get treatment.

The minister stressed that those who have infected with the virus are in stable condition, referring that all necessary steps are taken, in collaboration with the Foreign Ministry, to evacuate all nationals who are in the infected countries, test them and place them under obligatorily quarantine.

In addition, the ministers listened to some presentations by a number of ministers on the measures by the government bodies to face the spread of the coronavirus and means of coordination to achieve the desired goals.

The Cabinet expressed its appreciation to the efforts by officials at the Ministry of Health and all government bodies to fight the virus. In the light of the outbreak of the novel coronavirus worldwide, passengers leaving Kuwait via airports or land outlets have to undertake to comply with the safety rules set forth by the ministries of health and interior upon their return.

The regulations include remaining in a 14-day quarantine if need be pursuant to Act 8 (1969) and cooperation with the competent authorities in order to curb the spread of the virus and protect the public health in Kuwait, the Ministry of Health said in a statement on Thursday. In case of failure to meet the obligations, travelers would be liable to legal measures stipulated in the above-mentioned law, the statement reminded.