Passengers wearing masks, amid the new coronavirus outbreak, are checked by Iraqi Health Ministry employees upon their arrival at Basra airport, in Basra, Iraq February 1, 2020. REUTERS/Essam al-Sudani
ERBIL, Iraq (Reuters) - Erbil International Airport in the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region of Iraq denied entry to three Chinese citizens over fears about the coronavirus outbreak in China, authorities said on Saturday.
The three passengers were sent back to Dubai, from where they had flown to Erbil, a statement from Kurdistan’s airport authority said.
Several countries tightened travel curbs on Friday, a day after the World Health Organization declared a global health emergency.
Iraq’s Basra International Airport said on Friday it was denying entry to passengers of any nationality traveling to Iraq from China.
Writing by Aziz El Yaakoubi, Editing by Angus MacSwan