On the tarmac at Tunis-Carthage airport. - FETHI BELAID

Nine flights, mostly from France and Italy, to restart. For the first time in three months, commercial flights began to land on Saturday in Tunisia, where the tourist season nevertheless seems to be compromised by travel restrictions aimed at limiting the return of the new coronavirus.

Tunisia has officially known so far only 1,164 cases of coronaviruses including 50 deaths, and has recently detected only a few per day, almost all in compulsory quarantine centers. It closed its borders at the end of March.

Germany, China and Italy in green

Some 117 people aboard a flight from Paris arrived, most Tunisians living abroad, but there are also French, according to the Tunisian Ministry of Transport. It is not immediately known whether the people on board the flights were stranded outside Tunisia or whether among them were tourists.

Only travelers from countries considered safe, classified in a green list - including Germany, China or Italy - can arrive in Tunisia without any conditions. Those coming from countries classified orange, including France, Morocco and Spain, will have to present a negative PCR test made less than 72 hours before departure, said the Ministry of Health.

Supervised excursions for a hotel stay

People staying in hotels must limit their outings to guided group excursions. The others must commit in writing to a 14-day self-isolation at their place of residence. All are free to go out after six days provided they present a new negative test.

The countries not appearing on any list are classified red, like Algeria or Russia, two big markets for Tunisian tourism, the Ministry of Health told AFP. Only Tunisians can arrive from countries classified red: they must present a negative test, carry out a compulsory quarantine of seven days at the hotel at their expense, then take another test before leaving. The set of measures may change depending on the situation, depending on the authorities.

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