Saudi Arabia is imposing additional restrictions on entering and leaving the kingdom as of February 9 in light of the pandemic of a new coronavirus. This was announced Thursday by the kingdom's ministry of the interior on its official Twitter page.
According to the decision, Saudi nationals over the age of 16 must be vaccinated with a booster shot three months after receiving a second dose when leaving the country. When entering the kingdom, regardless of immune status, everyone over the age of eight, including nationals, must present a negative PCR test or COVID-19 antigen test done no earlier than 48 hours before arrival.
In addition, non-compliance with the mask regime in Saudi Arabia will be fined 1,000 riyals ($266).
As of February 1, full vaccination is mandatory for using any public transportation and cabs in Saudi Arabia. The exception is only for those who are exempt from vaccination, as reflected in a special annex by the Ministry of health. This decision affects trains, cabs, rental cars, including through any passenger transportation app, domestic and intercity buses, and ferries. In addition, according to the transport authorities, unvaccinated or not fully vaccinated people are also prohibited from entering the headquarters of the department, the buildings of transport companies and services, car rentals, carriers' offices. As for air transport, the rule of admission to flights only vaccinated passengers has been in effect in Saudi Arabia since September 1, 2021.
In the kingdom of nearly 35 million people, 23.7 million people (68%) have been fully vaccinated, with 7.5 million residents (21.12%) booster doses. 25.5 million people (71.5%) have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. In mid-January, the country recorded its highest number of coronavirus cases since the pandemic began - more than 5,000 - while back in November the number was as low as 20-30 people a day. Since the end of last year, the Saudi authorities have again obliged the population to wear masks and observe social distance.
GSV "Russia - Islamic world"
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Based on materials from TASS