‘No scientific basis for SA travel ban’

The UAE is aware that there is no scientific basis for its decision’ to maintain its travel ban on SA. That’s according to the Department of International Relations & Co-operation, which says it will continue to engage with the UAE. The ban has suspended Emirates flights out of Johannesburg, cutting out a key connection hub in Dubai. The suspension has been extended at least twice before and although the airline is taking bookings, it could not give Business Insider a guarantee that these flights would be honoured. International bans imposed on travellers from SA in the wake of Omicron's discovery in late November are easing. Since the peak of the Omicron-panic in mid-December – at a time when around 90 countries had imposed travel bans on SA and its neighbours – major routes have since reopened.