Spanish capital Madrid placed under partial lockdown

Some 4.8 million Madrid residents have been barred from leaving the city since Friday evening, making it the first European capital to return to lockdown due to surging coronavirus cases. Restaurants and bars in the Spanish capital and nine satellite towns shut early and slashed capacity by half in what has again become Europe’s worst infection hotspot. The new restrictions, that started at 10pm (20:00 GMT), are not as strict as the previous lockdown from March, when people were barred from leaving their homes. However, authorities advised residents not to move around unless absolutely necessary. “Madrilenos” were exasperated at political wrangling between the central and regional governments, and anxious about whether the measures would work. “We have been eight months with masks and without nightclubs and parties, and there is still contagion. Then what kind of impact will these restrictions make?” Sonny van den Holstein, owner of Sanissimo restaurant, told Reuters. “People are confused, they hesitate to go out … they are in fear,” he said, as a customer called to cancel a reservation. style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; top: 0; bottom: 0; right: 0; left: 0;">