The US on Monday reopens its land and air borders to foreign visitors who are fully vaccinated against Covid-19, ending 20 months of restrictions on travel that separated families, harmed tourism and strained diplomatic ties.
The ban, imposed by former president Donald Trump after March 2020 and upheld by his successor, Joe Biden, has been widely criticised and become emblematic of the upheaval caused by the pandemic.
The restrictions were particularly unpopular in Europe and US neighbours Canada and Mexico.
To slow the spread of the coronavirus, US borders were closed after March 2020 to travellers from large parts of the world, including the EU, Britain and China, India and Brazil. Overland visitors from Mexico and Canada were also banned.
The months of restrictions affecting hundreds of millions of people caused personal and economic suffering during the Covid-19 pandemic.
"It's been so hard," Alison Henry, 63, told AFP. "I just want to see my son."
The British woman plans to fly on Monday to see her son in New York after 20 months of separation.
Families on both sides of the Atlantic are eager to finally reunite with their loved ones.
Although travel from the US to Europe has been possible since summer, foreign US residents holding certain visas had no guarantee of being able to re-enter the country.
To cope with surging demand, airlines have increased the number of transatlantic flights and plan to use larger planes.
Along the border with Mexico, many cities in the US states of Texas and California have faced economic struggles because of anti-Covid trade restrictions.
Canada to Florida
Meanwhile, Canadian seniors will be able to resume their annual car trips to Florida to escape the bitter northern winters.
But the cost of the PCR tests Canada is requiring for cross-border travel – up to $250 each – can be prohibitive.
Ann Patchett, an Ontario resident, told the Ottawa Citizen that it will cost $500 for her and her husband to go south to visit family.
"Do you want to hug your children? Do you want to tuck your grandchildren into bed? It's very frustrating," Ms Patchett said.
New York congressman Brian Higgins, whose district touches the Canadian border and includes the US side of Niagara Falls, will on Monday join mayors from both countries to call on Canada to drop its testing requirement.
Lifting the travel ban will affect more than 30 countries. But entry into the US will not be totally unregulated.
Vaccination status
Authorities plan to closely monitor travellers' vaccination status and will still require them to present negative Covid-19 test results.
The US, from Monday, will require air passengers to be fully vaccinated and tested within three days before travel. Airlines will be required to put in place a contact-tracing system.
The land border opening will happen in two phases.
Starting on Monday, vaccines will be required for "non-essential" trips such as family visits or tourism, although unvaccinated travellers will still be allowed into the country for "essential" trips, as they have been for the past 18 months.
A second phase, starting in early January, will require all visitors to be fully vaccinated to enter the US by land, no matter the reason for their trip.
US health authorities have said all vaccines approved by the US Food and Drug Administration and the World Health Organisation would be accepted for entry by air.
At the moment, this includes the AstraZeneca-Oxford, Johnson & Johnson, Moderna, Pfizer/BioNTech, Covaxin, Sinopharm and Sinovac vaccines.
The US has not yet commented on the increase in Covid-19 cases in Europe.
'Grave concern' over Europe
The WHO has expressed "grave concern" over the rising pace of infections in Europe, warning that the current trajectory could mean "another half a million Covid-19 deaths" by February.
But US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy on Sunday told ABC that he was "cautiously optimistic about where we are.
"We can't take our foot off the accelerator until we're at the finish line," Dr Murthy said.
But in Berlin, Elisabeth Zours, 51, is ready to roll.
A lifelong Rolling Stones fan, Ms Zours had to miss a St Louis show by the rock super group in September because of Covid-19 restrictions and was "frustrated" by the slow US reopening.
Now she plans to make up for lost time.
"I've got tickets for four [US] concerts," Ms Zours said. "Their music is like a good friend."
The biog
Marital status: Separated with two young daughters
Education: Master's degree from American Univeristy of Cairo
Favourite book: That Is How They Defeat Despair by Salwa Aladian
Favourite Motto: Their happiness is your happiness
Goal: For Nefsy to become his legacy long after he is gon
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
A Bad Moms Christmas
Dir: John Lucas and Scott Moore
Starring: Mila Kunis, Kathryn Hahn, Kristen Bell, Susan Sarandon, Christine Baranski, Cheryl Hines
Two stars
In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
- Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000
- Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000
- Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000
- Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000
- Senior process engineer: Dh28,000 to Dh38,000
- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
Crazy Rich Asians
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Constance Wu, Henry Golding, Michelle Yeon, Gemma Chan
Four stars
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Facility’s Versatility
Between the start of the 2020 IPL on September 20, and the end of the Pakistan Super League this coming Thursday, the Zayed Cricket Stadium has had an unprecedented amount of traffic.
Never before has a ground in this country – or perhaps anywhere in the world – had such a volume of major-match cricket.
And yet scoring has remained high, and Abu Dhabi has seen some classic encounters in every format of the game.
October 18, IPL, Kolkata Knight Riders tied with Sunrisers Hyderabad
The two playoff-chasing sides put on 163 apiece, before Kolkata went on to win the Super Over
January 8, ODI, UAE beat Ireland by six wickets
A century by CP Rizwan underpinned one of UAE’s greatest ever wins, as they chased 270 to win with an over to spare
February 6, T10, Northern Warriors beat Delhi Bulls by eight wickets
The final of the T10 was chiefly memorable for a ferocious over of fast bowling from Fidel Edwards to Nicholas Pooran
March 14, Test, Afghanistan beat Zimbabwe by six wickets
Eleven wickets for Rashid Khan, 1,305 runs scored in five days, and a last session finish
June 17, PSL, Islamabad United beat Peshawar Zalmi by 15 runs
Usman Khawaja scored a hundred as Islamabad posted the highest score ever by a Pakistan team in T20 cricket
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, Leon.
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
School counsellors on mental well-being
Schools counsellors in Abu Dhabi have put a number of provisions in place to help support pupils returning to the classroom next week.
Many children will resume in-person lessons for the first time in 10 months and parents previously raised concerns about the long-term effects of distance learning.
Schools leaders and counsellors said extra support will be offered to anyone that needs it. Additionally, heads of years will be on hand to offer advice or coping mechanisms to ease any concerns.
“Anxiety this time round has really spiralled, more so than from the first lockdown at the beginning of the pandemic,” said Priya Mitchell, counsellor at The British School Al Khubairat in Abu Dhabi.
“Some have got used to being at home don’t want to go back, while others are desperate to get back.
“We have seen an increase in depressive symptoms, especially with older pupils, and self-harm is starting younger.
“It is worrying and has taught us how important it is that we prioritise mental well-being.”
Ms Mitchell said she was liaising more with heads of year so they can support and offer advice to pupils if the demand is there.
The school will also carry out mental well-being checks so they can pick up on any behavioural patterns and put interventions in place to help pupils.
At Raha International School, the well-being team has provided parents with assessment surveys to see how they can support students at home to transition back to school.
“They have created a Well-being Resource Bank that parents have access to on information on various domains of mental health for students and families,” a team member said.
“Our pastoral team have been working with students to help ease the transition and reduce anxiety that [pupils] may experience after some have been nearly a year off campus.
"Special secondary tutorial classes have also focused on preparing students for their return; going over new guidelines, expectations and daily schedules.”
LAST-16 FIXTURES
Sunday, January 20
3pm: Jordan v Vietnam at Al Maktoum Stadium, Dubai
6pm: Thailand v China at Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
9pm: Iran v Oman at Mohamed bin Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Monday, January 21
3pm: Japan v Saudi Arabia at Sharjah Stadium
6pm: Australia v Uzbekistan at Khalifa bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
9pm: UAE v Kyrgyzstan at Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Tuesday, January 22
5pm: South Korea v Bahrain at Rashid Stadium, Dubai
8pm: Qatar v Iraq at Al Nahyan Stadium, Abu Dhabi
The biog
Occupation: Key marker and auto electrician
Hometown: Ghazala, Syria
Date of arrival in Abu Dhabi: May 15, 1978
Family: 11 siblings, a wife, three sons and one daughter
Favourite place in UAE: Abu Dhabi
Favourite hobby: I like to do a mix of things, like listening to poetry for example.
Favourite Syrian artist: Sabah Fakhri, a tenor from Aleppo
Favourite food: fresh fish
Company profile
Company name: Suraasa
Started: 2018
Founders: Rishabh Khanna, Ankit Khanna and Sahil Makker
Based: India, UAE and the UK
Industry: EdTech
Initial investment: More than $200,000 in seed funding
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Evacuations to France hit by controversy
- Over 500 Gazans have been evacuated to France since November 2023
- Evacuations were paused after a student already in France posted anti-Semitic content and was subsequently expelled to Qatar
- The Foreign Ministry launched a review to determine how authorities failed to detect the posts before her entry
- Artists and researchers fall under a programme called Pause that began in 2017
- It has benefited more than 700 people from 44 countries, including Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Sudan
- Since the start of the Gaza war, it has also included 45 Gazan beneficiaries
- Unlike students, they are allowed to bring their families to France
The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
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