Coronavirus: Italy Extends Quarantine Measures Nationwide
Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said that people would only be
permitted to travel for work or family emergencies.
He said the measures, which come into effect on Tuesday, were to
defend the most fragile members of society.
Italy's coronavirus death toll jumped on Monday by 97 to 463. It
is the worst-hit country after China.
The number of confirmed infections also increased to 9,172, up
from 7,375 on Sunday, official figures show.
Cases of the virus have been confirmed in all 20 Italian
regions.
In
a televised address on Monday, Mr Conte said that Italy's "customs must
change" and that the best thing was for people to stay at home.
"We're having an important growth in infection... and of
deaths," he said.
"We
all must give something up for the good of Italy. We have to do it now, and
we'll only be able if we all collaborate and adapt to these more stringent
measures.
"This is why I decided to adopt even more strong and severe
measures to contain the advance... and protect the health of all
citizens."
The
prime minister added that all sporting events - including football matches -
were being suspended nationwide.
In an earlier interview with La Repubblica newspaper, Mr Conte
said of the outbreak: "These days, I have been thinking about the old
speeches of [Winston] Churchill - it is our darkest hour, but we will make
it".
Mr Conte described
the measures as "I stay home" - with people forbidden to assemble in
public.
"No
more nightlife; we can't allow this anymore since they are occasions for
contagion," he said.
The
restrictions are similar to those earlier applied to the worst affected
Lombardy region, and 14 other provinces.
The
government has said only those with a valid work or family reason that cannot
be postponed will be permitted to travel.
Passengers
departing on flights, except temporary visitors, will have to justify
themselves, as will all those arriving by plane.
There
are controls at train stations to check temperatures.
Cruise
ships are forbidden to dock at various ports.
Earlier on Monday,
six inmates died amid riots at prisons across the country after authorities
suspended all visits as part of attempts to control the spread of the disease.
The
trouble began in the northern city of Modena after inmates at the Sant'Anna
prison were told that all visits had been suspended.
Three
people were reported to have died at the prison, while a further three died
after being transferred from there.
It
is thought that at least two of the dead lost their lives to drug overdoses
after they raided a prison hospital for the heroin substitute methadone.
At San Vittore
prison in Milan, detainees set fire to a cell block on one of the facility's
six wings, then climbed onto the roof through windows and started waving
banners, officials said.
At
a prison in the southern city of Foggia, about 20 inmates managed to break out
of the building during protests. Many were quickly recaptured, Italy's Ansa
news agency reported.
There
were also riots at several other prisons in northern Italy and at facilities in
Naples and the capital, Rome.
What is the Situation Elsewhere?
The number of infections worldwide is now more than 111,000,
with about 3,890 deaths.
Everyone arriving in Israel will be required to self-quarantine for 14 days, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced.
Iran has reported 43 new deaths related to the disease in the
past 24 hours. At least 237 people have died and 7,161 have
been infected across the country since mid-February, although
the real figures are believed to be far higher.
China, which has recorded the highest number of fatalities, reported
just 40 new cases of Covid-19, the lowest since 20 January.
Although this indicates that the spread there is
slowing, senior officials warned against reducing vigilance.
In other developments:
The World
Health Organization (WHO) has warned that the threat of a pandemic is
"very real"
Canada has
confirmed the first death related to the virus - an elderly male patient in a
care home in Vancouver, British Columbia
In France,
Culture Minister Franck Riester has become the first member of the government
to be infected with the virus. His team said he had spent several days of the
past week in parliament, where a number of other cases have been confirmed
In the US,
the number of confirmed cases now exceeds 500
A cruise ship carrying thousands of people who
were stranded for days due to a coronavirus outbreak is reported to have docked at the port of Oakland, near San Francisco
FROM .bbc.com/news/world-europe
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