Indonesia bans foreign tourist arrivals at Jakarta airport as COVID-19 spikes

FILE PHOTO: Garuda Indonesia aircraft flight GA881 carrying passengers from Narita, Japan, is sprayed with water upon its arrival at I Gusti Ngurah Rai International airport, as Bali welcomes its first direct flight carrying foreign tourists in nearly two years, after it was closed for foreign visitors due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, in Badung, Bali, Indonesia February 3, 2022. Courtesy of Garuda Indonesia/Handout via REUTERS

JAKARTA (Reuters) - Indonesia has temporarily banned foreign tourists entering the country through Jakarta's airport, the transport ministry said, in a bid to slow a spike in coronavirus infections driven by the Omicron variant.

The Southeast Asian country has seen a jump in cases, with more than 36,000 infections recorded on Sunday and the bed occupancy rate at hospitals in the capital reaching 63%.