Libya closes border with Tunisia over Delta variant concern

Tripoli, July 9 Libya on Friday closed its border with neighbouring Tunisia over concerns regarding the spread of the highly contagious Covid-19 Delta variant.

Due to the deteriorating pandemic situation in Tunisia amid the rise in infections with the Delta variant, as well as the announcement of the collapse of the country's health system, the Libyan government decided to close the air and land borders for a week, Xinhua news agency quoted Tripoli's spokesman Mohamed Hamuda as saying.

Through the consulate in Tunisia, Libya will take care of its nationals stranded in the Tunisian territory and facilitate their return to the homeland, he said.

The spokesman also said that schools and universities in Libya have closed temporarily until the Eid Al-Adha holiday, which is expected to start on July 20.

For weeks, Tunisia has been hit by an outbreak of the Delta variant, which caused record infections and deaths and forced many cities in the country to impose lockdown against the pandemic.

Libya has also witnessed a significant increase in Covid-19 infections over the past few days.

On Thursday, the total number of cases in Libya rose by 1,384 to 199,526, with 180,204 recoveries and 3,227 deaths.