Lebanon enters full lockdown to stem virus surge
- Date: 14-Jan-2021
- Source: Arab Weekly
- Sector:Healthcare
- Country:Lebanon
Lebanon enters full lockdown to stem virus surge
BEIRUT--A full lockdown started in Lebanon Thursday, with residents barred even from grocery shopping and dependent on food deliveries, in a bid to slow a surge in novel coronavirus cases.
The new restrictions were only loosely respected in some areas of the country, however, after mass protests in recent years against a political elite held responsible for a deepening economic crisis.
The lockdown, ordered after some hospitals started to run out of intensive care beds, includes a 24-hour curfew until January 25.
Non-essential workers are barred from leaving their homes, and supermarkets are supposed to operate delivery services only.
Those wishing to request an emergency exemption — to see a doctor for example — can do so by sending a mobile phone text message or by filling in a form online.
In the capital, roads were quieter than usual on Thursday morning, while non-essential shops remained shuttered.
But in areas of Beirut where there were no security forces, some
People shop at a supermarket in Beirut as they stock up on provisions two days before a total lockdown due to the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic on January 12, 2021.(AFP)people ventured out to buy groceries from local shops.
On social media, users circulated a picture of a traffic