Coronavirus: China bars travelers in new virus restrictions
Waves of charter flights were canceled on Thursday after Beijing halted the entry of almost all travelers from Bangladesh, Belgium, Britain, India or the Philippines except for Chinese citizens, in the latest move to control coronavirus risk.
Even people with valid residency visas in China and recent tests showing that they do not have the virus will not be allowed to enter from these countries, according to the new regulations. It remained unclear whether citizens of those countries could enter if they traveled to China from other countries.
“The suspension is a temporary response necessitated by the current situation of Covid-19,” read a statement by the Chinese Embassy in Britain. Diplomats, flight crews and other people with special visas will be allowed in.
Context: The new restrictions are preventing businesspeople and teachers who were foreign residents of China before the pandemic from returning. They add to separate Chinese health rules requiring people to obtain two tests less than 48 hours before flying.
Here are the latest updates and maps of the pandemic.
In other developments:
■ The U.S. on Wednesday recorded 107,000 new coronavirus cases, setting a record for new daily cases. Five states — Colorado, Indiana, Maine, Minnesota and Nebraska — also set single-day case records.
■ England began a four-week national lockdown on Thursday, and Greece announced new restrictions nationwide starting this weekend, in Europe’s latest surge.
■ The Danish government will slaughter millions of mink at more than 1,000 farms, citing concerns that a mutation in the novel coronavirus that has infected them could possibly interfere with the effectiveness of a vaccine.
The New York Times