Oman isolates tourist textile market amid coronavirus fears
DUBAI, April 16 (Reuters) - Oman locked down a textile market in a town popular with tourists over coronavirus fears as the Gulf Arab state reported more than 100 new infections on Thursday, mostly among foreign residents, to take its count above 1,000.
The sultanate earlier this month closed off Muscat governorate, which includes the capital, after locking down the town of Muttrah, home to one of the country's oldest souqs, due to the spread of infection among low income migrant workers.
Oman's health minister said a textile market in Southeastern governorate's Jalan Bani Bu Ali town, home to historic watchtowers and a fort, would be isolated from 4 a.m. Thursday until further notice after 12 infections were detected there.
Gulf Arab states have reported a rise in infections among low-wage migrant workers in overcrowded housing despite measures to combat the disease, including halting passenger flights, imposing curfews and closing most public venues.
Millions of migrant workers, mostly from Asia, make up the backbone of Gulf economies and work in sectors that have been hit by the pandemic. Some governments are trying to arrange repatriation flights for jobless foreign workers or those whose residencies have expired and will not be renewed.
The six Gulf states have recorded more than 19,000 cases with over 100 deaths. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have the largest infection counts at above 5,000.
In Kuwait, state-owned Kuwait National Petroleum Co said on Thursday it was setting up centres in three districts that can shelter up to 7,000 "marginalised" foreign workers to aid government containment efforts, state media reported.
Saudi Arabia and Bahrain have said they will use shuttered schools to rehouse expatriate workers from cramped quarters.
Gulf Arab states have boosted capacity to handle any surge in coronavirus cases. The UAE's Dubai emirate set up a 3,000-bed field hospital in the exhibition halls of its World Trade Centre. Bahrain converted the multi-storey car park of a military hospital into a 130-bed intensive care unit. (Reporting by Alaa Swilam and Nafisa Eltahir; Writing by Ghaida Ghantous; Editing by Giles Elgood)
