Greece suspends flights to Qatar after 12 coronavirus-positive cases

Greece has suspended flights with Qatar until 15 June after several cases of COVID-19 disease were discovered on a Qatar Airways-flagged aircraft that arrived in Athens from the capital Doha.

The Greek Civil Protection Authority said that 12 of the 91 people on board the Qatar Airways flight that arrived in the Greek capital on Monday tested positive for the coronavirus. 

Among the diagnosed cases are nine citizens from Pakistan legally residing in Greece and coming from the Pakistani city of Gujrat, two Greeks from Australia and a member of a Greek-Japanese family, according to the official statement of the Civil Protection Authority of the European country. These persons were discovered during the relevant checks that are carried out before leaving the airport facility. 

The Greek government also explained that all passengers on the flight were quarantined in several Athenian hotels until the results of the coronavirus tests are known. The infected people were also placed in quarantine for two weeks to prevent the spread of the virus. Those who are not infected will have only one week, instead of two, to be locked up. 

Greek health authorities said that after seven days, passengers who tested negative will be re-tested to confirm that they are not infected. 

Since flights resumed in different countries after the COVID-19 shutdown, cases of travelers infected with the coronavirus have been reported on several flights. Even one that was registered last week in a flight that arrived to the Canary Island of Lanzarote in Spain. 

On 15 June it is expected that the airports of Athens and Thessaloniki will be reopened to resume air connections between Greece and Qatar. Initially, for the time being, only a very restricted number of flights will be allowed to enter Greek territory from 19 countries, not including Spain. The rest of the country's airports will become operational again from 1 July after the cessation of activity due to the coronavirus health crisis. 

This is a severe blow to Greece, which is highly dependent on the reception of tourists. The tourist industry accounts for 20% of Greece's gross domestic product.