France, Belgium and Poland on Saturday tightened curbs as COVID-19 cases surged in Europe, while Chile confined more than 80 percent of its population.
France said the situation is “critical” and added three more departments to the 16 already under tight restrictions.
Twenty million people in France, including the greater Paris region, are classed as living in high-infection zones.
Photo: EPA-EFE
They are not allowed to travel further than 10km from home without an essential reason.
Daily cases in France have nearly doubled since the start of this month and there have been more than 200,000 new cases every week.
However, that did not stop a crowd turning out for an outdoor protest concert on Saturday evening in central Paris.
Numbers in France’s intensive-care wards are close to record highs in November last year and still climbing.
In stark contrast, across the Channel people were relishing the prospect of a pint and a haircut as British Prime Minister Boris Johnson vowed to stick to his plan to unwind anti-COVID-19 measures.
Johnson said his government’s successful mass vaccination drive and pro-business policies would hasten economic recovery, “jab by jab, job by job.”
“In just a few days’ time, I’m finally going to be able to go to the barbers,” the mop-haired Johnson added.
Wales on Saturday became the first UK nation to lift travel restrictions.
From today, England’s stay-at-home order would be relaxed, allowing groups of up to six people to meet outside.
The government plans to allow outdoors drinking in pub gardens, and non-essential retail, such as hairdressers, from April 12.
On Saturday, music fans in Barcelona, Spain hugged, danced and sang along at a sold-out rock concert after taking rapid COVID-19 tests in a trial that could revive the live-music industry in Spain and beyond.
About 5,000 fans at the show for Spanish indie band Love of Lesbian had to wear masks, but social distancing was not required in the Palau Sant Jordi arena.
“It was spectacular. We felt safe at all times. We were in the front row and it was something we’d missed a lot,” publicist Salvador, 29, said after the show. “We are very proud to have had the chance to take part in this. We hope it’ll be the first of many.”
Meanwhile Belgium closed all businesses involving non-medical physical contact from Saturday. Shops offering “non-essential” services can only receive clients with appointments.
Poland shuttered creches, playgrounds, furniture and DIY stores, as well as beauty salons and barber shops.
Social distancing in churches in the predominantly Catholic nation has also been tightened, with one person allowed in every 20m2 instead of 15m2 earlier.
Chile also started a new and strict lockdown for more than 80 percent of its population, with shopping trips for even basic products banned during weekends.
The COVID-19 pandemic has killed more than 2.7 million people since December 2019, according to an Agence France-Presse tally on Saturday.
Health officials have rolled out more than 510 million COVID-19 vaccine doses around the world, but with big gaps between countries.
The WHO on Friday appealed to richer nations to donate vaccines to help poorer ones start inoculations.
The deployment of vaccines has been glaringly unequal, with the US accounting for more than one-quarter of the global total and poorer nations lagging far behind wealthier ones.
Kenya on Friday became the latest African country to order a partial lockdown, shutting schools and bars in and around the capital, Nairobi.
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