Lebanon enters full lockdown to stem virus uptick

Lebanon enters full lockdown to stem virus uptick

BEIRUT “” Lebanon went into a tight lockdown on Thursday, with residents barred even from grocery shopping and forced to rely on food deliveries as the country battles to slow spiking novel coronavirus cases.

 

The new restrictions were only loosely respected in some areas of the country, however, reflecting deep mistrust of 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 only allowed to operate by delivery.

 

Those needing an emergency exemption -- to see a doctor, say -- can request one via a text message or by filling in a form online.

 

In the capital, roads were quieter than usual, while non-essential shops remained shuttered. Security forces stopped drivers at several checkpoints in the centre of the city.

 

Security forces said compliance with the new measures stood at 94 per cent.

 

But in some areas, some people ventured out to buy groceries.

 

As the lockdown went into force, authorities announced Thursday that 41 people had died of the coronavirus over the previous 24 hours, with 5,196 new infections registered.

 

 Heart attacks 

 

Recent days have seen Lebanon