Pakistan to close Chaman border with Afghanistan from tomorrow

ISLAMABAD: The federal government has announced to close Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan amid apprehensions of outbreak of the novel coronavirus, ARY News reported on Sunday.

The government has issued a letter with regard to closure of the Pak-Afghan border crossing at Chaman in the first phase.

Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan will remain closed from March 02 (Monday) for seven days, according to a notification of the Ministry of Interior.

The Chaman border crossing will remain closed for seven days in the first phase, the order said. The decision has been taken in view to avoid the outbreak of novel coronavirus, the letter said.

The porous border with Afghanistan is a cause of concern for Pakistan after the new coronavirus erupted in neighbouring Iran.

Islamabad has closed its border crossings with Iran while Kabul has also suspended all travel to the country, which has reported 43 deaths out of nearly 543 infections — making it one of the hardest hit countries outside the virus epicentre China.

Afghanistan announced its first virus infection on last Monday involving a patient who had recently been in Iran where millions of Afghans live.

The virus has spread to more than 25 countries, killing over 2,835 and infecting 85,000, mostly in China. But new outbreaks in Europe, the Middle East and in Asia have fanned fears of the contagion taking hold in poor nations which lack the healthcare infrastructure to cope.