Nigeria ready to reopen its airports after three months

By Dilara Hamit

ANKARA (AA) - Nigeria will begin reopening its airports from July 8 following a three-month lull due to the coronavirus outbreak, the country's aviation minister said Wednesday.

Flights will initially resume between the capital Abuja and Lagos. Airports in Kano, Port Harcourt, Owerri and Maiduguri will resume operations on July 11, and domestic flights at other airports will resume on July 15, Hadi Sirika said on Twitter.

"Date for international to be announced in due course," he said.

As of Wednesday, the total number of COVID-19 cases in Nigeria had risen to 26,484, with 603 deaths and 10,152 recoveries, according to US-based Johns Hopkins University.

After originating in Wuhan, China last December, COVID-19 has spread to at least 188 countries and regions.

The pandemic has killed more than 515,000 people worldwide, with more than 10.6 million confirmed cases, while recoveries have surpassed 5.4 million, according to figures compiled by Johns Hopkins University.