Lebanon’s Interior Ministry announced on Sunday that the nighttime curfew will be shortened by one hour to start at 8 p.m., as the Health Minister said that it was not possible to give answers as to how long the lockdown will last until after May 10.
The Interior Ministry’s announcement comes days before the start of Ramadan when observant Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset.
The decision will go into effect Monday.
Lebanon imposed a nighttime curfew last month in an attempt to limit the spread of the new coronavirus. Most businesses, schools and universities have been closed for weeks. The only airport is also shut, except for a few flights returning expatriates stranded abroad.
Restaurants will be allowed to deliver food until the start of the curfew.
On Sunday, the Health Ministry announced that only one person tested positive for the coronavirus, raising the total number of cases in Lebanon to 673.
Health Minister Hamad Hasan said it was not possible to build conclusive data on the results of tests conducted over the last 24 hours.
There will be random testing in different areas to gather more accurate data on COVID-19 in the country, Hasan said.
But the government will not be able to decide how long the lockdown - which is in place till April 26 - will last until after May 10, he said.
Approximately 1,500 tests per day will be conducted, he added.
For Lebanon, the coronavirus outbreak came at a time when the country was already deep in financial crisis.
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