沙特将停止发放工作许可证埃博拉受灾国灾民
Saudi Arabia will stop issuing work permits for workers from Ebola-hit countries, including Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, local media reported on Tuesday.
The precaution measure is part of a recommendation by foreign and health ministries to prevent the virus from entering the country. On April 1, Saudi Arabia imposed a ban on hajj and Omra visa issue for citizens of Guinea and Liberia.
The country registered its first suspected Ebola case in August. The results of the blood tests turned negative, but the patient died of serious complications later.
The temporary suspension of labor visas will not affect the country's labor market, since the number of workers from the three countries is very little, Deputy Labor Minister Mufrej Al-Haqbani said in a statement. He added laboratory tests before arrival were strictly required by the Labor Ministry for all foreigners coming from West Africa.
The virus, for which there is no treatment or vaccine, has claimed 1,552 lives out of 3,069 reported cases, including 694 in Liberia, 430 in Guinea, 422 in Sierra Leone and six in Nigeria, according to the World Health Organization.
