QATARI AMIR ORDERS EVACUATION OF QATARI, KUWAITI CITIZENS FROM IRAN Come home ... stay home, Kuwaitis told

Fingerprint attendance system suspended

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

FOLLOWING are set of emergency numbers announced by the Ministry of Health for Kuwaitis and residents to contact the authorities in case of suspicion of corona virus. 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.

In this Feb 24 photo, Muslim pilgrims pray near the Kaaba, the cubic building at the Grand Mosque, as worshippers circumambulate around during the minor pilgrimage, known as Umrah in the Muslim holy city of Makkah, Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia halted on Feb 27 travel to the holiest sites in Islam over fears of the global outbreak of the new coronavirus just months ahead of the annual hajj pilgrimage, a move coming as the Mideast has over 220

confirmed cases of the illness. (AP)

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