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A Ministry of Interior source said this decision was based on preventive and precautionary measures recommended by the country’s Ministry of Health
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It also reportedly comes in light of the spread of new variants of the virus, and the low effectiveness of a single dose of the vaccine against them
Saudi Arabia on Monday announced that Saudi citizens will henceforth be allowed to travel abroad only if they have received the second dose of the vaccine against Covid-19.
According to an official statement, the Ministry of Interior source who made this announcement also said the decision would come into force from August 9.
The source said that this decision was based on preventive and precautionary measures recommended by the country’s Ministry of Health and within its sustained efforts to control the outbreak of Covid-19.
It also reportedly comes in light of the spread of new variants of the virus, and the low effectiveness of a single dose of the vaccine against those new variants.
The decision is also reportedly based on studies and scientific research that show receiving two doses would protect people against complications of the virus variants.
The ministry’s statement excluded the three categories of people from the decision, the first being
children under the age of 12.
Such children would be required to obtain a valid health insurance policy, approved by the Saudi Central Bank, to cover the risks associated with a Covid-19 infection.
The people in the second category are individuals who recovered from the coronavirus, but they would be exempted only if it has been less than six months since they were infected. Such people are expected to be protected by natural antibodies they developed during the infection.
Ther third category of people includes those who recovered from virus and then received one dose of the vaccine.