Dubai Ramps Up Restrictions On Hotels And Events As Coronavirus Cases Soar

In recent weeks, influencers have come under immense scrutiny for jetting off to Dubai while the rest of the UK is in lockdown.

Now, Dubai has been forced to tighten its Covid-19 restrictions, ordering hotels and restaurants to pause entertainment activities from today until further notice, as daily cases surge in the United Arab Emirates.

The country has also asked hospitals to cancel elective surgeries "that require deep sedation or general anaesthesia" to focus on the pandemic, as the number of people with the virus continues to rise.

The new ruling is going to be in place until February 19th, but may be extended.

Instagram/ Laura Anderson)

They regulations come after inspections showed "an increase in number of [Covid-19 rule] violations" taking place.

The orders are in place both to slow the spread of the virus and to free up space in hospital, so that they can deal with rising cases.

The UAE has seen a steep increase in infections in recent days after many tourists have flocked there to escape their lockdowns in Europe.

The UK and Dubai recently shut their travel corridor - which allowed residents to move between the two countries - following the increase in cases.

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Despite the rise in cases, the UAE has seen a very low number of deaths so far in the pandemic - largely due to its young population and comprehensive testing regulations.

So far, the country has reported roughly 264,000 infections overall, and 762 deaths.

Under lockdown rules, Brits are legally required to stay at home. You can only travel (whether internationally or within the UK) if you have a legally permitted reason. This was also the case under last month's Tier 3 and Tier 4 restrictions which stated that you should avoid travelling apart from for work purposes.

However, that didn't stop a whole load of stars from TOWIE, Love Island and similar reality shows jetting abroad ahead of the travel corridor closing - with many claiming they were holidaying for 'work purposes'.

Instagram/ Stephen Bear)

"Why is it that we can't travel more than 5 miles to exercise but celebrities can have a week in Dubai," one person wrote on Twitter, sharing frustration at the situation recently.

As another wrote: "I'll never forget that in march celebrities thought this pandemic would last a few weeks so they started making "we're all in this together guys!" videos...

"8 months later they're all in Dubai on jet skis".

Topics: Coronavirus, travel

Joanna Freedman

Joanna is a journalist at Tyla with a particular interest in highlighting women's issues and telling inspiring first person stories. She's also their resident foodie, and loves covering exciting new beauty launches, too. Contact her at [email protected].

@joannafreedman