Qatar drops coronavirus restrictions just before World Cup
Doha – Qatar on Saturday took a step toward easing coronavirus lockdown measures just hours before the world’s biggest sporting event kicked off, opening several sports and recreation facilities for limited use and allowing visitors from Europe and the Americas.
An early afternoon statement from the ministry of health said some government buildings, including those with sporting amenities, will start operating under a reduced set of regulations.
The statement, issued after the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia, and Egypt confirmed the first case of the virus in the Gulf, added that the country had taken a series of “precautions to combat the spread of the virus”.
“All the health facilities used for sport and recreational activities will follow the new measures,” it read.
It said the opening of sports facilities and public parks would allow Qatar to “provide the best conditions for sporting activities, training, health, wellness and relaxation” during the week of June 21-25. But it said many facilities, including mosques and hospitals, would remain closed.
The statement did not mention if any facilities would close during the World Cup, which opens today, or whether all restrictions will end on June 24, when football’s tournament ends.
The statement said there were no plans to introduce measures similar to those implemented in Tunisia in early March. Tunisia had ordered cafes, pharmacies and other businesses that sell alcohol to shut down after public health authorities confirmed six confirmed cases of an emerging virus in the southern city of Mahalla.
“While the outbreak of the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) is limited to China’s Wuhan City [the epicentre of the disease], asymptomatic or low-level infectious individuals can transmit the disease to other individuals or to the general public through close contact with such patients,” it said.
“The most important thing is to protect ourselves from this virus. To prevent the coronavirus from spreading by the infected person, the infected person should isolate themselves until it is determined that this is necessary, and should strictly respect the self-isolation measures suggested by the national health authorities. Only then should the infected person attend a medical centre for the testing of these infected people,” it added.
The move in Qatar followed similar announcements by many governments in Asia, Europe and the Americas.
Qatari health authorities said on Saturday they had found a cluster of cases with “moderate
