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Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte is concerned about the growing number of new infections and hospitalizations in his country, and is not ruling out another complete lockdown.
“We do not want a repeat of what we already experienced in spring”: Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced new crown measures in The Hague on Tuesday.
Photo: Bart Maat (EPA / Keystone)
The Netherlands has drastically tightened crown measures. Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced a “partial closure” in The Hague on Tuesday. Pubs, cafes and restaurants will be closed and the sale of alcohol will be prohibited after 8 pm In addition, citizens can only receive a maximum of three guests per day in their apartments and should only use buses and trains in urgent cases. Premier Rutte also announced a general mask requirement for all public spaces, such as shops, museums or libraries, until now this was only an urgent recommendation.
Rutte on Tuesday called the new measures “the hammer with which we want to defeat the virus.” And this hammer must be big enough, said the Prime Minister at the press conference broadcast live on TV. “We do not want what we already experienced in spring to be repeated.”
The Minister of Health, Hugo de Jonge, justified the increase in cases with the lack of discipline in parts of the population. Some people interpreted the recommendations as something that should not be followed, De Jonge said Tuesday at the news conference in The Hague. Let’s stop talking about recommendations. The time of non-commitment is clearly over. ”
The restrictions take effect on Wednesday night and initially apply for four weeks. The situation will be reviewed again after two weeks. If nothing has changed in the situation afterwards, a total lockdown is “unavoidable,” Rutte warned. “Now it is up to us all. Be realistic Dutch and take responsibility.”
Hospitalizations increased rapidly
The Netherlands, like most countries in Europe today, is seeing a rapid increase in new corona infections (read on: Why the virus is on the rise again in Europe). In the last seven days, 252 infections have been reported for every 100,000 inhabitants. The most affected are Amsterdam and Rotterdam, each with around 410 infections per 100,000 inhabitants. The situation is “alarming” in almost all regions, Rutte said.
Last week, the Institute for Health and the Environment (RIVM) recorded nearly 44,000 new infections, 60 percent more than the previous week. About 7,400 new infections were reported Tuesday, about 550 more than the day before. This was the first time the 7000 mark was passed.
The number of patients in hospitals and intensive care units is also increasing rapidly, according to the information. 34 people were known to have died from Covid-19 on Tuesday and 13 deaths had been reported the day before. Since the outbreak of the pandemic, there have been around 190,000 infections and 6,631 deaths in the country.
Israel’s total blockade is taking effect
In response to the growing number of cases, many European countries have again tightened their crown measures and have even ordered regional (partial) closures in some cases. For example, bars and restaurants around Paris and Marseille were closed again after the number of cases in this area had increased rapidly. The central government of Spain resorted to regional blockades. Last week, it sealed the badly affected Madrid and eight other cities near the capital.
However, so far only a few countries have applied such strict national restrictions as the Netherlands. The Czech Republic is one of them. On Monday, authorities reported 4,635 new cases, the highest value in a weekend. As a result, the government closed theaters, cinemas, museums, galleries and sports facilities on Monday. According to his own statements, Prime Minister Andrej Babis does not rule out a second confinement as in spring.
Like the first country in history Israel entered a second total blockade in mid-September. The country has also seen a sharp increase in the number of infections in recent months. Meanwhile, the number of new infections is decreasing accordingly. Data from John Hopkins University again (read here, what other countries can learn from Israel’s mistakes). The confinement restrictions were extended until Sunday. The government is advising on Thursday to gradually relax the measures, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Wednesday night.
