Egypt has urged citizens traveling to Kuwait to postpone travel after the Gulf country decided to suspend entry for non-Kuwaitis for two weeks, effective as of February 7.

In an official statement on Thursday, Nabila Makram, emigration and expat affairs minister, asked citizens to delay travel plans in the current period amid several precautionary measures taken by Kuwait aiming to stem the outbreak of the pandemic and the spread of new variants.

Makram asked that citizens temporarily in transit in Gulf countries en route to Kuwait to return to Egypt, especially if they won’t be able to travel to Kuwait before the airport’s closure and they can’t bear the cost of accommodation in their current transit country.

She said providing alternatives to cover accommodation for Egyptians residing in Gulf transit countries, including the UAE and Oman, would not be facilitated.

Several businessmen, charity group Misr ElKheir, and Banque Misr have previously helped in bearing huge expenses to cover stranded Egyptians in the UAE and Oman, the minister said, adding that such aid would be difficult to provide now due to the extended period of border closures and visa difficulties in transit countries.

On Wednesday, Kuwaiti authorities announced a two-week ban on foreigners arriving to the country beginning Sunday.

Authorities have also ordered most businesses to shut down from 8pm to 5am beginning Sunday for one month.

Health clubs, spas, and gyms are included in the closure order, with the country also banning celebrations for its upcoming 25 February National Day.

Kuwait saw infections drop in late November; however, cases began to spike at the start of the new year. It has reported over 166,000 cases, with 950 deaths since the outbreak.