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An Israeli tourist wearing a mask is seen in the historic al-Fahidi neighborhood of Dubai on January 11, 2021. As much of the world tightens its lockdown amid the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, Dubai remains open to tourism, billing itself as a sunny, quarantine-free escape – despite a sharp rise in cases.
Karim Sahib | AFP via Getty Images
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — After 2.5 years, the UAE will lift the mandatory mask requirement for nearly all public indoor spaces.
The National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Agency (NCEMA) announced the change in a televised statement, saying it would take effect on September 28. Long-standing mask regulations are the backbone of the UAE’s measures against Covid-19, as well as near-universal vaccinations and rapidly available PCR tests.
The ruling officially applies to the UAE capital, Abu Dhabi, but the country’s six other emirates, including Dubai, are expected to follow suit. Masks are now only required in hospitals, public transport and places of worship, NCEMA said.
Abu Dhabi is one of the strictest emirates in the UAE in terms of requirements and mandatory wearing of masks. In Dubai, masks are mandatory in public indoor spaces, but can be removed when sitting, eating, drinking and exercising.
Enforcement has eased in many other emirates in the summer, and it is common to see people not wearing masks in public places.
An Emirati man wearing a protective mask walks at the al-Barsha Health Centre in the Gulf Emirate of Dubai on December 24, 2020.
Giuseppe Case | AFP via Getty Images
The UAE will also stop publishing its daily tally of Covid-19 cases, which it first started publishing in March 2020.
Several other changes were also announced – schools will not require teachers or students to wear masks, the country’s airlines can decide whether or not to mandate masks, places of worship no longer require social distancing, and only those who test positive for Covid- 19 will have to quarantine, not those who have been in contact with them.
The quarantine period for positive cases was reduced from ten days to five days.
In addition, vaccinated Abu Dhabi residents – who previously had to provide proof of a negative PCR test every 14 days to enter public spaces through local app Al Hosn – will be required to show such proof every 30 days. Those who have not been vaccinated must still provide a negative test every 7 days. This rule does not apply to other emirates.
Dubai has been credited with tackling the pandemic over the past two years, with strict mask-wearing rules and early vaccination enabling it to reopen for businesses in the months following the initial March-April 2020 lockdown. Open to tourists. There were periods of spikes in cases in the years that followed, but Dubai’s real estate boomed as many foreign workers flocked to the emirate to live a normal life.
Covid-19 cases have steadily declined in recent months to an average of 300 to 400 per day, according to NCEMA. NCEMA cites the UAE’s total number of cases at more than one million and 2,343 deaths since the start of the pandemic.
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