Manama, Dec. 18 (BNA): Countries across Europe are moving to re-impose stricter measures to stem a new wave of novel coronavirus infection (Covid-19) triggered by a highly transmissible omicron variant, prompting calls for protests from Paris to Barcelona.
As case numbers mount, worried ministers in France, Cyprus and Austria have tightened travel restrictions, according to the Associated Press.
Paris canceled New Year’s Eve fireworks. Denmark closed theaters, concert halls, parks and museums. Ireland has imposed an 8pm curfew for pubs with limited attendance at indoor and outdoor events.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan underscored the official concern about cases of climbs and their potential to overwhelm the healthcare system by declaring a major accident on Saturday, a move that allows local councils in the British capital to coordinate work more closely with emergency services.
Irish Prime Minister Michel Martin captured the sense of the continent in an address to the nation, saying the new restrictions were necessary to protect lives and livelihoods from the versatility of the virus.
“None of this is easy,” Martin said Friday night. “We are all exhausted by COVID and the limitations it requires. The twists and turns, disappointments and frustrations take a toll on everyone. But that is the reality we are dealing with.”
The World Health Organization said on Saturday that the omicron variant of the coronavirus has been detected in 89 countries, and that cases of COVID-19 involving this variant are doubling every 1.5 to 3 days in places with community transmission and not just infections acquired abroad.
The World Health Organization has indicated that key questions about Omicron remain unanswered, including how effective current COVID-19 vaccines are against it and whether the alternative produces severe disease in many infected individuals.
However, the UN health agency said Omicron’s “significant growth advantage” over the delta variant means it will likely overtake delta soon as the dominant form of the virus in countries where the new variant is locally circulating.
Dutch government ministers met on Saturday to discuss advice from a panel of experts that recommended tightening the partial lockdown already in place that has led to a drop in infections recently.
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