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Almost 200 cases of infection may be related to an outbreak in a religious setting in Sarpsborg and Fredrikstad. More than 1,100 people have been quarantined in the two Østfold municipalities.
The celebration was held in Skjeberg in the Al-Ghadir religious community.
Outbreaks related to religious circles have also been experienced in South Korea.
At the same time, the government has recently granted an exemption from the distance requirement for religious ceremonies that require short-term contact.
– no one had symptoms
– It is important for me to say that the distance requirement for religious congregations has definitely not been removed. It is absolutely true that it is a type of situation that has been seen both in Norway and internationally that represents a risk of spreading the infection, Høie tells Dagbladet.
– The government made a very small adjustment that clarified that, for example, performing infant baptism or carrying a coffin should be possible even if we have a general distance requirement also in religious contexts.
Outbreak
Municipal chief physician Bergmann informs Dagbladet that 38 new cases were recorded in connection with the outbreak in Sarpsborg and Fredrikstad on Wednesday. Another 26 cases were discovered Thursday. Since then, it has exploded. On Saturday, 15 new cases were registered in Sarpsborg and 20 in Fredrikstad, the most infections in one day in Sarpsborg, according to the municipality.
The celebration was associated with the feast of Ashura. The celebration usually lasts 13 days. It was interrupted a few days before the plan when the first case of contagion was reported last Sunday.
About 170 people were present.
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– It remains true that cases of contagion are limited to these meetings and the religious environment. Therefore, we experience that we have an overview of the outbreak and that there is currently no spread of the infection to other parts of society. Together with the municipality of Fredrikstad, we are closely following this situation, he tells Dagbladet and continues:
– When people get together, it is demanding to keep their distance at all times. This has also been the case in these meetings. There is no doubt that there has been a direct infection between people who have been close for various events, and this is also when the risk of infection is greatest.
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Claim removed
On August 14, the government amended the provisions that include religious and philosophical events in the covid-19 regulations. The government made an exception to the subway rule for people attending religious ceremonies.
This is to ensure that religious ceremonies that require short-term close contact can be carried out in accordance with regulations. Examples of this are baptism and the carrying of coffins.
Exceptions have also been made to the distance requirement for schoolchildren and children’s sports. Among other things, it has been argued that groups with the lowest burden of disease should not have the highest burden of initiative.
Solberg responds
However, the distance requirement has been the main argument that the government has not yet opened up to broad-based sports again. The government has argued that the subway rule is one of the most important measures to prevent the spread of infection.
Prime Minister Erna Solberg announced last week that the government will wait for a further reopening of the partnership due to the recent boom in the infection.
– I am also very fond of soccer, so I understand that it is very painful not to be able to practice their activity. But we have made a very important priority: As of August 1, we open for children and youth sports. We prioritize keeping it open even though the infection increased, and we opted to keep it open so many bars can play against other sports teams. Then we adults will have to wait a little longer, the prime minister told Dagbladet.
– I experience that with the boom in infections that we had, the understanding has become much greater. We will also try to find a good way to start over. But it must be safe and cannot contribute to the spread of infection in society.
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