Specially trained dogs are attempting to sniff out coronavirus infections among travellers arriving at Dubai Airport, in a world first.
K9 sniffer dogs have been stationed at Dubai International Airport and other airports across the United Arab Emirates (UAE), where they are “working to track possible infections using swabs gathered from arriving passengers”, Abu Dhabi-based newspaper The National reports.
According to Major Salah Al Mazrooei of Dubai Police, the samples are taken from passengers’ armpits for the tests, being conducted “in collaboration with partners from Dubai Health Authority”, and “the results are out in less than one minute”.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
“Travellers who have a fear of dogs do not need to worry as there is no direct contact between dogs and passengers,” adds The National. “Instead, the animals are exposed to samples collected from travellers in an isolated room.”
Debate over whether dogs can sniff out the virus has been raging for months. But “the UAE has chosen to believe that sniffer dogs are efficient in detecting Covid-19 in the passengers”, says The Times of India.
In a statement, Dubai’s Ministry of Interior said: “Data and studies showed that detection of presumed Covid-19 cases achieved approximately 92% in overall accuracy.
“Figures indicate that dogs can quickly detect infected cases, help protect key sites, effectively deal with huge crowds and secure large events, airports, etc.”
Although it may sound barking mad, “this method has been used to detect several other diseases that can affect body odor such as cancer and malaria”, The Sun reports.
A recent study revealed that researchers in Germany have trained army sniffer dogs to distinguish between samples of fluids from patients infected with Covid and healthy donors.
“The animals were able to positively detect SARS-CoV-2 infected secretions with an 83% success rate, and control secretions at a rate of 96%,” according to Deutsche Welle.
-
Home Depots are the new epicenters of ICE raidsIn the Spotlight The chain has not provided many comments on the ongoing raids
-
Why does Trump keep interfering in the NYC mayoral race?Today's Big Question The president has seemingly taken an outsized interest in his hometown elections, but are his efforts to block Zohran Mamdani about political expediency or something deeper?
-
The pros and cons of banning cellphones in classroomsPros and cons The devices could be major distractions
-
What are the Abraham Accords and why are they under threat?The Explainer The 2020 agreements would be 'undermined' if Israel annexes West Bank, UAE warns
-
China is silently expanding its influence in American citiesUnder the Radar New York City and San Francisco, among others, have reportedly been targeted
-
India's fake weddingsUnder The Radar New party trend promises all the fun of a wedding without any of the downsides
-
How China uses 'dark fleets' to circumvent trade sanctionsThe Explainer The fleets are used to smuggle goods like oil and fish
-
One year after mass protests, why are Kenyans taking to the streets again?today's big question More than 60 protesters died during demonstrations in 2024
-
What happens if tensions between India and Pakistan boil over?TODAY'S BIG QUESTION As the two nuclear-armed neighbors rattle their sabers in the wake of a terrorist attack on the contested Kashmir region, experts worry that the worst might be yet to come
-
Why Russia removed the Taliban's terrorist designationThe Explainer Russia had designated the Taliban as a terrorist group over 20 years ago
-
Inside the Israel-Turkey geopolitical dance across SyriaTHE EXPLAINER As Syria struggles in the wake of the Assad regime's collapse, its neighbors are carefully coordinating to avoid potential military confrontations
