Malaysia imposes travel ban on all visitors from South Korea as Covid-19 rages

CORONAVIRUS | Malaysia has imposed a temporary travel ban on all visitors from South Korea as the global Covid-19 outbreak worsens.

"A temporary entry ban will be imposed on all visitors from the Republic of Korea, including foreign citizens who have visited the city of Daegu and Cheongdo county in the last 14 days before arriving in Malaysia," said Health Ministry director-general Noor Hisham Abdullah.

He added that Malaysian citizens, permanent residents and those holding student or long-term social passes who have visited the city of Daegu and Cheongdo county in the last 14 days before arriving in Malaysia must also undergo screening by the Health Ministry.

He added that the Immigration Department would also set up counters to deal with people arriving from the Republic of Korea, Japan, Italy and Iran, which are among the worst affected countries by the Covid-19 outbreak.

Noor Hisham said the Health Ministry is closely monitoring the Covid-19 situation in those countries.

"For now, Malaysians are advised to postpone their travel to regions or cities declared as Covid-19 outbreak zones in China, Republic of Korea, Japan, Italy and Iran," he said.

To date, 83,272 people have been infected by the Covid-19 globally with 2,858 deaths.

In South Korea, 2,022 people have been infected and 13 people have died. Italy has 650 cases with 17 deaths while Iran recorded 245 cases with 26 deaths. Japan has 186 cases with four deaths.

Most of the cases were recorded in China, particularly in the Hubei province where the virus first started. However, it is now spreading globally.

Malaysia recorded three new Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours, bringing the total case to 25. Before that, there had been no new cases since Feb 15, and the previous 22 cases have fully recovered. - Mkini