Canada joins list of countries to ban flights from India over coronavirus

Canada has said it would ban all flights from India and Pakistan for 30 days due to the growing wave of COVID-19 cases in that region.

Transport Minister Omar Alghabra said the ban would start late Thursday, speaking hours after India reported a global record of more than 314,000 new infections in the previous 24-hours.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford, meanwhile, apologised Thursday for a failed attempt to close playgrounds and allow police to stop and question people who were not in their homes measures that created a backlash from police forces, health officials and the public.

The leader of Canada’s most populous province, in his first public appearance since announcing the restrictions, said his government had moved too fast with the measures.