Bahrain urges citizens to avoid travel to China

CAIRO – 31 January 2020: Bahrain has urged its citizens to avoid non-essential travel to China and other world countries, where new coronavirus emerged.

“In light of the spread of the coronavirus ... we call on all citizens to avoid non-essential travel to China”, Bahraini Foreign Ministry said in a Friday statement.

The ministry also advised all its nationals against travelling to other world countries, where the deadly virus spread, to ensure their safety.

On January 30, President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi directed the government to take all necessary measures for returning the Egyptian expatriates in the Chinese city of Wuhan, the birth-place of the deadly coronavirus (nCoV), said the Cabinet in a statement.

The Egyptian ambassador to China Mohamed al-Badry contacted the Chinese authorities to get permission for returning the Egyptians who want to go back home and leave the city, said added.

The cabinet called upon all Egyptians who want to leave the city to call the embassy on 01065322541 or send an e-mail on egy.emb_bejjing@mfa.gov.eg , besides the other various ways of contacts on the social media platforms.

on Thursday, Egypt’s Health Minister Hala Zayed announced sending 10 tons of medical supplies to China, to help prevent the spread of the new deadly coronavirus, affirming that the Egyptian state would provide support to the Chinese people in Egypt.

The World Health Organization declared the coronavirus outbreak a public-health emergency of international concern Thursday as the first person-to-person transmission of the virus was reported in the US.

China's National Health Commission said there have been an additional 43 deaths and 1,982 new confirmed cases, as of the end of Thursday. That brings the country's total to 213 deaths and 9,692 confirmed cases, the government said.

Additional reporting by MENA