A couple pose for wedding photos in a church near the city center of Beirut, Lebanon, on Nov. 6, 2021.(Xinhua/Liu Zongya)
PCR testing proved effective in preventing coronavirus spread, a health expert says, adding he saw weddings cancelled in January after positive cases were detected among relatives of brides and grooms.
BEIRUT, Jan. 29 (Xinhua) -- Ali Hijazi and Sara Rifai, a couple from Lebanon, offered each of their wedding guests a COVID-19 PCR testing kit as an accompaniment to the invitation card, in a bid to prevent the spread of the virus.
About three years after an engagement, and without seeing the end of the pandemic, the couple decided to throw a small wedding with a small number of invitees who would get free rapid COVID-19 tests in advance.
Rifai told Xinhua that she is excited about the idea as she has been waiting for too long to get married.
As for another couple Rabih Amash and Hala Bayram, they hired three health professionals to do PCR testing for their invitees one day ahead of their wedding.
A couple pose for wedding photos in a church near the city center of Beirut, Lebanon, on Nov. 6, 2021.(Xinhua/Liu Zongya)
"I know this is going to cost additional money, but it will bring comfort to our guests," Bayram told Xinhua.
"This is a once-in-a-lifetime event. I deserve it," she noted.
Lebanon has seen a steep increase in the daily number of COVID-19 infections following the Christmas and New Year festive season.
Health experts urged citizens to take precautionary measures, such as wearing masks, keeping social distancing, receiving the COVID-19 vaccine and conducting regular PCR testing.
Kassem Assaad, a health professional based in the capital Beirut, told Xinhua that many couples in Lebanon who are keen to celebrate their weddings now offer PCR testing for their guests.
A woman poses for wedding photos in a church near the city center of Beirut, Lebanon, on Nov. 6, 2021. (Xinhua/Liu Zongya)
PCR testing proved effective in preventing the virus spread, Assaad said, adding he saw several weddings getting cancelled in January after positive cases were detected among relatives of the brides and grooms.
However, Jacques Choucair, head of the infectious diseases department at Hotel Dieu Hospital in Beirut, told Xinhua that conducting PCR testing for guests one day ahead of an event can only partly reduce the risk of infection.
A couple pose for wedding photos in a church near the city center of Beirut, Lebanon, on Nov. 6, 2021. (Xinhua photo)
"It is not fully effective because PCR testing must be done at least 48 hours ahead of the event and people who receive the test should quarantine for the next 48 hours to make sure they do not get infected right after the testing," he explained. ■
