[DUBAI] The United Arab Emirates will not receive passengers coming from Pakistan as of June 29 until a special Covid-19 lab is set up to test them, the civil aviation authority said on Sunday.

The decision also applies to transit flights originating from Pakistan, where the number of cases is rising rapidly, the General Civil Aviation Authority said in a statement carried on state media.

Dubai state carrier Emirates had already said it was suspending flights from Pakistan effective June 24.

REUTERS