Qatar bans arrivals from Philippines, 13 other countries over coronavirus fears

CAIRO - Qatar has temporarily barred travelers from 14 countries from March 9 as a precaution against the rapidly spreading coronavirus, the government announced on Sunday.

The ban covers China, Egypt, India, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Syria and Thailand.

Qatar Airways had already suspended flights to and from Italy.

Qatar reported three more cases of the virus on Sunday, bringing the total there to 15.

COVID-19 in Philippines

The Philippine Department of Health (DOH) on Sunday said there were four new COVID-19 cases in the country, bringing the total to 10.

The first three cases involved all Chinese nationals, with one of the patients dying—the first death from the disease outside China.

Two more cases were confirmed on Friday, both Filipino males, one an employee of financial services firm Deloitte Philippines in Bonifacio Global City in Taguig City, and the other a Cainta resident who frequented a Muslim prayer hall in Greenhills Shopping Center in San Juan City.

The sixth case was confirmed on Saturday, the wife of the fifth patient. 

The four new cases announced on Sunday are: a 38-year-old Taiwanese male, a 32-year-old Filipino male, an 86-year-old American male, and a 57-year-old Filipino male.

President Rodrigo Duterte has agreed to declare a public health emergency after the DOH raised Code Red Sub-Level 1 alert. —Reuters/KG, GMA News