Philippines extends travel ban on Pakistan, six other countries

Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte approved extension of the coronavirus restrictions on travellers from seven countries to prevent the spread of the B.1617 which is a double mutant variant of thedeadly coronavirus, first discovered in India

On May 11, Philippines confirmed its first two cases of the B.1617 variant both returning overseas Filipinos who had no travel history from India.

Since then, the country has detected a total of 13 people infected with the same variant.

However, Duterte on Monday prolonged partial coronavirus curbs in the capital and nearby provinces until mid-June to contain infections that have been decreasing since hitting a peak in April.

Following the directives, travellers coming directly from those countries, or with a history of travel to any of them within the last 14 days, will be denied entry.

Moreover, religious gathering remain capped at 30 % of venue capacity while dining in restaurants can operate at 20 % in the capital region.

Hence, non-essential travels will remain prohibited.

Meanwhile, Philippines has reported 13 Covid-19 cases tied to the more infectious B.1.617.2.  The country has the second-highest number of Covid-19 cases and deaths in Southeast Asia, next to Indonesia.