Singapore will do away with requirements to wear masks indoors starting August 29, as the country sees its COVID-19 situation stabilise further, the health minister said on Wednesday.
For the first time in more than two years, people in the Southeast Asian city-state will no longer be required to wear masks indoors except on public transport and in high-risk settings like healthcare facilities.
The health ministry also updated rules for non-vaccinated travellers, dropping a 7-day quarantine requirement starting next week.
Singapore, which is a major Asian financial and travel hub, lifted most pandemic curbs, including travel restrictions, earlier this year.
About 70 per cent of the city-state's 5.5 million population has already contracted COVID-19, Ong Ye Kung, the health minister said in a news conference, adding that the re-infection rate is so far "very low".
Singapore has vaccinated more than 90 per cent of its population and has among the lowest COVID-19 mortality rates in the world.
The US military has hit and "completely destroyed" 10 inactive mine-laying vessels, US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday, warning that any mines laid in the Strait of Hormuz by Iran must be removed immediately.
Britain is working with allies on a range of options to support commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz in the face of Iranian threats, Prime Minister Keir Starmer's spokesperson said on Tuesday as the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran roils oil prices.
Australia on Tuesday granted humanitarian visas to five Iranian women soccer players after they sought asylum, fearing persecution on their return home for their refusal to sing the national anthem at an Asia Cup match.
The humanitarian crisis in Lebanon has deepened amid the wider Middle East war, with 84 children killed and more than 667,000 people displaced, two UN agencies said on Tuesday.
Broadcasting every weekday, Georgia Tolley goes beyond the headlines to speak to government ministers, decision makers, analysts and local experts to find out how the news will impact those of us living in the UAE.
Apple Inc. shares fell Monday after a closely followed analyst warned that demand for the firm’s new iPhone 16 Pro model has been lower than expected. Is this a sign that the AI software just isn’t ready?
Dubai’s current population is more than double compared to almost twenty years ago, which now stands at 3.7 million. Lots of families are also moving to the UAE now. So what does it mean for the property market?