Promachonas (Greece): Countries around the world are reimposing lockdowns and implementing new health checks at their borders in an effort to curb a resurgence of the coronavirus before it spins even further out of control.
Starting on Wednesday, all travellers arriving in Greece from a land border with Bulgaria were required to carry negative coronavirus test results issued in the previous 72 hours and translated into English. The new rules, which follow an increase in tourism-related COVID-19 cases, triggered an immediate drop in arrivals compared to recent days.
Residents of Australia’s second-largest city, Melbourne, were warned on Wednesday to comply with lockdown regulations or face tougher restrictions.
The developments come with more than 13 million cases of coronavirus cases confirmed worldwide, and with over 578,000 deaths, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.
The actual numbers are thought to be far higher due to a number of reasons including limited testing.
In Serbia, which has been hit hard by a spike in infections and anti-government protests, a government crisis team expanded a ban on gatherings of more than 10 people from Belgrade to encompass the entire country.
Renewed restrictions took effect in Hong Kong on Wednesday, with public gatherings limited to four people, restaurants restricted to takeout after 6 pm, and a one-week closure for gyms, karaoke bars, and selected other businesses.
After a surge in daily infections beginning last month, Israel moved last week to reimpose restrictions, closing events spaces, live show venues, bars and clubs.
It has imposed lockdowns on areas with high infection rates, which in some cases sparked protests from residents.
In Spain, authorities in the northeastern Catalonia region made fresh attempts to stem the spread of new coronavirus outbreaks as health experts warned that more and better contact tracing is needed.
Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike said on Wednesday that the spread of the infections in the Japanese capital have escalated to levels tantamount to issuing an alarm and requested that residents and business owners step up their preventive measures.
Travellers arriving in Russia starting on Wednesday had to either provide coronavirus test results at the border or take a virus test within three days of arriving to the country. (AP)
