ZCZC
BFF-09
HEALTH-VIRUS-SAUDI
Saudi seals off Shiite region, halts travel over coronavirus
RIYADH, March 9, 2020 (BSS/AFP) – Saudi Arabia on Sunday cordoned off an
oil-rich Shiite stronghold, suspended air and sea travel to nine countries
and closed schools and universities, in a series of measures to contain the
fast-spreading coronavirus.
The lockdown on Qatif, an eastern area that is home to around 500,000
people, is the first action of its kind across the Gulf region, which has
confirmed more than 230 coronavirus cases — most of them people returning
from religious pilgrimages to Shiite-majority Iran.
Given the kingdom’s 11 recorded cases of the new coronavirus are from
Qatif, “it has been decided to temporarily suspend entry and exit” from the
area, the interior ministry said in a statement carried by the official Saudi
Press Agency (SPA).
Except for essential services such as pharmacies and gas stations, work
will stop in all government and private institutions in Qatif, the statement
added.
Although the ministry said the lockdown was temporary, it risks fuelling
resentment in the flashpoint region whose residents have long accused the
Sunni-dominated government of discrimination, a charge Riyadh denies.
The government also decided to temporarily suspend “the travel of citizens
and residents to the UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain, Lebanon, Syria, South Korea,
Egypt, Italy and Iraq, as well as suspend the entry of those coming from
those countries,” SPA reported.
“The kingdom also decided to stop air and sea travel between the kingdom
and the mentioned countries,” it added.
The decision is expected to leave expat workers from those countries as
well as Saudi travellers stranded.
Saudi Arabia also announced it was closing all public and private
universities and schools across the country from Monday until further notice,
SPA reported.
– Pilgrimage suspended –
Saudi Arabia has blamed arch-rival Iran for its spike in coronavirus cases,
while condemning Tehran for allowing its citizens entry without stamping
their passports.
The Saudi government has reminded its nationals of a standing ban on travel
to Iran, as the two countries are locked in a battle for regional supremacy.
Iran is home to key shrines and pilgrimage sites for Shiites, who make up
between 10 and 15 percent of Saudi Arabia’s population of 32 million.
The kingdom has also suspended the “umrah” year-round pilgrimage over fears
of the disease spreading to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina in the west.
The unprecedented suspension of the umrah has raised uncertainty over the
annual hajj pilgrimage, scheduled for the end of July.
The pilgrimages, a major source of revenue, could also be a source of
contagion and the move mirrors a precautionary approach across the Gulf to
cancel mass gatherings — from concerts to sporting events.
Bahrain’s Formula 1 Grand Prix scheduled for March 20-22 will be held
without spectators, the organisers said Sunday, the latest sporting event to
be affected by measures to contain the disease.
Saudi Arabia is also grappling with a coronavirus-led slump in oil prices
just as it seeks to raise funds to finance Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s
ambitious economic transformation plan.
BSS/AFP/GMR/0850 hrs