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On Saturday at dawn, Lebanon’s New Year closing procedures began to address the high number of new Coronavirus cases and increase healthcare sector availability after hospitals reached their maximum capacity.
On Friday night, Prime Minister Hassan Diab appealed to citizens to adhere to closure procedures and preventative standards after the government succeeded with an early general shutdown in containing the first wave, but the country recently experienced record infection rates. despite the isolation of dozens of towns and villages.
The number of new Coronavirus infections has passed the 100,000 mark, reaching 102,607 cases, including 796 deaths. According to the statistics of the Ministry of Health, Lebanon, which has about six million inhabitants, has about 11 thousand injured on a weekly basis.
The general closure will continue until the end of the current month, with the possibility of extending it if necessary. It will be accompanied by a curfew from five in the evening until five in the morning and will be completely banned on Sunday.
Likewise, the Ministry of the Interior has regulated the circulation of cars based on its license plate numbers, so that it is not possible to drive more than three days a week. The closure decision does not include Beirut airport, as it includes exceptions for the health and vital sectors.
And an AFP photographer reported that the capital’s main streets were nearly deserted, amidst security barriers being set up at several points to arrest offenders, while the maritime city’s “Corniche” seemed empty of its daily visitors.
On the eve of the closure, Diab said that the goal is “to avoid a collapse of health in our society and protect ourselves and our people”, stressing that “the blockade itself is not a solution, it is an opportunity to increase the health preparation of the country “.
“All the measures taken by the state will not help if the Lebanese do not adhere to wearing masks, sterilization and social distancing,” he added.
Officials fear the collapse of the health care system, especially given the high number of injuries among medical staff and their inability to receive new patients, especially as intensive care beds are full.
The pulmonary and intensive care physician of Rafic Hariri Governmental Hospital, Saeed Al-Asmar, warned of the seriousness of the health situation. “We are at the peak”, he told AFP, “the situation is critical and is getting worse”.
He added: “There is an increase in the number of injured in light of the lack of beds, and there are patients in need of extreme care and we have to leave them in the emergency room”, explaining that “the general closure despite difficult economic conditions it helps and relaxes the medical sector and gives them some time to prepare more. “
The growing spread of the virus comes at a time when Lebanon is witnessing its worst economic crisis, which has doubled poverty rates, which has prompted economic entities to oppose closure restrictions.
Diab said: “Lebanon is like all countries in the world, the confrontation between the economy and our health and our life, and I personally choose life. Health is a priority over the economy.”
As part of Lebanon’s support to support outbreak response burdens, two aircraft carrying medical equipment provided by the state of Qatar arrived in Beirut Thursday to equip two field hospitals in Tire (in the south) and Tripoli ( in the north), each with a capacity of 500 beds, as announced by the Qatari embassy in Beirut.
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