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Greece will be under national quarantine on Saturday for three weeks. The government is introducing the severe measure in response to the record number of new COVID-19 infections in recent days.
“Once again, I chose to take action sooner rather than later,” Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis was quoted as saying by BTA.
He added that he had taken into account the opinion of the experts who advised the government.
The Greek prime minister explained that the increase in new cases in the past five days has forced him to take action now, rather than waiting to see if the recently announced restrictions work.
“If the government had decided to wait and the current measures had not worked, the pressure on the hospitals would have been unbearable,” he explained.
Mitsotakis said the government will financially support the citizens who will be affected by the new lockdown, adding that details of the plan will be presented by Finance Minister Christos Staikuras later today.
The new measures provide for the closure of shops except supermarkets and pharmacies. Citizens will need a permit to leave.
Secondary schools will be closed, but lower grade students and kindergarten children will continue to attend classes. The use of a protective mask will be mandatory everywhere.
The number of new cases of coronavirus infection in Greece reached 2,646 yesterday, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 46,892. With today’s government decision, Greece becomes another European country to declare a national “blockade”.
