Kenya Bans Flights To and From Dubai

In what is seen as a retaliation move against Dubai which had banned all passenger flights from Kenya due to alleged fake Covid-19 vaccination certificates, the Kenyan authorities suspended the flights to and from the Middle East country with immediate effect.

The suspension was confirmed by the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) Director General, Gilbert Kibe, who noted that the suspension took effect Monday midnight, January 10, for an initial period of seven days.

“Inbound and transit passenger flights from UAE are suspended for a period of seven days. We are doing this to reciprocate a ban on Kenyan passenger flights to UAE,” he stated.

The ban will, however, not affect cargo flights which will continue with normal operations.

Dubai Civil Aviation Authority (DCAA) had issued a travel ban to Kenya which took effect on December 20, 2021, at 10:30am.

“Customers will not be accepted for travel on Emirates flights at Nairobi during this time,” read an excerpt from the Authority’s statement.

At the time, DCAA asked affected customers not to call immediately, rather, hold onto their tickets until flights resume.

“…get in touch with their travel agent or booking office to make new travel plans. Emirates regrets any inconvenience caused.”

The news comes as Kenya recorded a 6.9 per cent increase in the Covid-19 positivity rate to top 20.8 percent as at Monday, January 10. The total number of cases currently stand at 312,572 with the number of fatalities inching closer to the 5,500 mark.

Health CS Mutahi Kagwe, in media briefings, has insisted that Kenyans should get the vaccine in a bid to combat the virus. The total number of people vaccinated stand at 10,609,955.