Lebanon’s government has ordered most of the country to shut down again for four days, starting on Wednesday night, as it seeks to ward off a coronavirus resurgence after easing some restrictions.
The country has been under lockdown since mid-March to rein in an outbreak that has infected 870 people and killed 26. Lebanon started lifting restrictions last week as part of a longer-term plan, letting restaurants, hair salons, construction sites and others reopen at lower capacity.
But "the rate at which the coronavirus is spreading from one person to the other has accelerated in our community in the past three days," Prime Minister Hassan Diab said on Tuesday, explaining why his government is tightening lockdown measures.
The cabinet agreed on Tuesday on the “full closure” for four days to curb the rise, after a drop in cases which the government had hailed as a success.
“This achievement is at risk of collapsing” because some people did not comply with the guidelines, Diab was quoted as saying during the meeting.
He said the country has recorded more than 100 new infections over four days, accusing some of "negligence and lack of responsibility" for violating government measures to stem the coronavirus.
The total lockdown -- which will start at 7:00 pm on Wednesday and end at 5:00 am on Monday -- excludes the health, agriculture, food and manufacturing industries, Information Minister Manal Abdel Samad said after the cabinet meeting.
But "citizens should stay home and avoid going out except for urgent cases," she told journalists.
The closure will also allow teams from the health ministry to conduct more testing, she said.
She added that the government would re-evaluate its original five-stage plan for gradually reopening the economy.
Beirut airport has been closed for nearly two months, except for flights bringing thousands of expatriates home, adding to the rise in infections.
The lockdown already includes an overnight curfew, with security forces patrolling some streets.
The pandemic has compounded woes in Lebanon, which was already wrestling with a financial crisis that has slashed more than half the value of its currency since late last year.
