BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 7
By Tamilla Mammadova – Trend:
After the suspension of direct flights with Italy, the travel expenses of Georgian citizens who currently are in Italy will be covered by the state, said Georgian Economy Minister Natia Turnava, Trend reports via Georgian media.
"I would like to assure our citizens who intended to return from Italy to Georgia through direct flights that we are already working to organize their return to Georgia. The costs will be paid by the government”, Turnava said.
Georgia suspended direct flights with Italy on March 6 in order to prevent the spread of coronavirus in the country. Coronavirus in Georgia has mostly been detected in passengers who have travelled to Italy recently.
To date, nine cases of coronavirus infection have been recorded in Georgia. All infected are Georgian citizens who have recently arrived from abroad. In addition, 170 people are quarantined with suspected coronavirus.
The outbreak in the Chinese city of Wuhan - which is an international transport hub - began at a fish market in late December 2019.
Some sources claim the coronavirus outbreak started as early as November 2019. The symptoms include cough, headache, fatigue, fever, aching and difficulty breathing. It is primarily spread through airborne contact or contact with contaminated objects.
Chinese health authorities say that the majority of the people who have died were either elderly or had underlying health problems.
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