Jordan to Impose Nationwide Lockdown after Parliamentary Elections
Source: Xinhua| 2020-11-02 05:35:26|Editor: huaxia
People wearing masks walk out of a store in Amman, capital of Jordan, on Nov. 1, 2020. According to the Jordanian Health Ministry, Jordan registered 3,259 new cases on Sunday, bringing the overall tally to 75,866. The kingdom also reported 37 new deaths, with the current COVID-19 death toll standing at 866. (Photo by Mohammad Abu Ghosh/Xinhua)
AMMAN, Nov. 1 (Xinhua) -- In order to curb the surge in COVID-19 cases, Jordan's Prime Minister Bisher Khasawneh on Sunday announced that a five-day nationwide lockdown would be imposed from Nov. 11, a day after the country's parliamentary elections.
According to the Jordanian Health Ministry, Jordan registered 3,259 new cases on Sunday, bringing the overall tally to 75,866. The kingdom also reported 37 new deaths, with the current COVID-19 death toll standing at 866.
Addressing a press conference in the kingdom's capital Amman, the prime minister said the lockdown would start around 5:00 p.m. local time on Nov. 11.
In addition to the upcoming lockdown, Jordan also put forward new restrictions, which included minimizing large gatherings, increasing the curfew time by one hour and closing amusement parks and gyms.
Starting tomorrow, there will be more police patrols that would enforce the defense laws related to wearing face masks and issue fines against violators, Khasawneh added.
He urged citizens to act more responsibly and to abide by the health rules such as wearing face masks and ensuring social distancing to prevent the spread of the virus. Enditem
Lebanon Shuts Down 115 Villages, Imposes New Curfew amid Rising COVID-19 Infections
Source: Xinhua| 2020-11-02 03:03:11|Editor: huaxia
BEIRUT, Nov. 1 (Xinhua) -- Lebanon's Caretaker Interior Minister Mohammad Fahmi issued a statement on Sunday ordering complete lockdown in 115 villages and towns in the country along with a nationwide curfew due to the increase in COVID-19 cases, the National News Agency reported.
The curfew starts from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. local time every day.
The minister also prevented public and private gatherings on all Lebanese territories while ordering all pubs and night clubs to remain closed until further notice.
Meanwhile, Caretaker Health Minister Hamad Hassan said on Sunday that the partial closure in the country proved to be inefficient, urging Lebanese authorities to shut down the whole country to
We are about to witness an imminent disaster if we do not consider taking tougher measures, Hassan said.
limit the spread of the virus.
Lebanon has been fighting against COVID-19 since Feb. 21. The virus has killed 643 people in the country so far while the total number of infections stands at 82,617. Enditem
Hassan noted that Lebanon has been witnessing death cases among young people infected with COVID-19 due to negligence by citizens or lack of awareness among families.
Iraq reports 1,997 new COVID-19 cases, 472,630 in total
Source: Xinhua| 2020-11-01 01:39:04|Editor: huaxia
BAGHDAD, Oct. 31 (Xinhua) -- The Iraqi Health Ministry reported on Saturday 1,997 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the nationwide infections to 472,630.
The new cases included 629 in the capital Baghdad, 301 in Duhok, 214 in Erbil, and 174 in Sulaimaniyah, the ministry said in a statement.
The ministry also reported 48 new deaths and 2,414 more recoveries in the country, raising the death toll from the infectious virus to 10,910 and the total recoveries to 399,655.
A total of 2,862,007 tests have been carried out across the country since the outbreak of the disease in February, with 12,672 done during the day, according to the ministry statement.
It is worth noting that the clear decline in new COVID-19 cases on Saturday came with a drop in the number of tests during the day, which is nearly half of the routine number in recent weeks.
The ministry had attributed the increase of COVID-19 infections to lack of public compliance with the health instructions and a stronger testing capacity after the increase of labs in Baghdad and other provinces.
China has been helping Iraq fight the COVID-19 pandemic.
From March 7 to April 26, a Chinese team of seven medical experts spent 50 days in Iraq to help contain the disease, during which they helped build a PCR lab and install an advanced CT scanner in Baghdad.
Since March 7, China has also sent three batches of medical aid to Iraq. Enditem