BELGRADE – Serbian authorities have ordered all nonessential shops, as well as bars and restaurants to close this weekend amid a surge in coronavirus infections in the Balkan country.
The restrictions will take effect at 9 p.m. local time on March 12 and will last until March 15, according to the government-appointed crisis body.
All shops and other facilities are to remain closed during the weekend, except food stores, pharmacies, health facilities, and gas stations. All public events will also be suspended.
Pupils in higher primary school grades will switch to online classes next week, senior health official Zoran Gojkovic said.
The Health Ministry has recorded more than 4,500 new coronavirus infections over the past day, and 24 more deaths caused by COVID-19.
Overall, the authorities have recorded more than 507,000 cases and over 4,600 deaths since the start of the pandemic.
More than 1.5 million of Serbia's 7-million-strong population have received at least one shot from China’s Sinopharm, Pfizer-BioNTech, Russia's Sputnik V, or AstraZeneca vaccines -- meaning the country has one of the highest rates of inoculation in Europe.
Serbia Shuts Nonessential Shops To Fight Coronavirus Surge
Related
Editors' Picks
Top Trending
1
In Russia's War Economy, The Warning Lights Are Blinking
2Attack From Afghanistan Kills Chinese National In Tajikistan, Sources Say
3U.S. Reportedly Allows Ukraine To Strike Russia With Long-Range Weapons
4RFE/RL Reveals Chilling New Details Of Bucha Massacre As Ukraine Marks 1,000 Days Of War
5Putin Says Russia Fired New Intermediate Missile At Ukraine After ICBM Accusations
6Could U.S. Long-Range Missiles Tip The Balance In The Ukraine War?
7No Smooth Sailing For Climate Activist Greta Thunberg In The Caucasus
8Wider Europe Briefing: Georgia's Vanishing EU Dreams
9Steps Too Far As Moscow, Washington Cross 'Red Lines' Over Ukraine?
10Ukraine Live Briefing: Verkhovna Rada Closes Over Strike Fears
RFE/RL has been declared an "undesirable organization" by the Russian government.
If you are in Russia or the Russia-controlled parts of Ukraine and hold a Russian passport or are a stateless person residing permanently in Russia or the Russia-controlled parts of Ukraine, please note that you could face fines or imprisonment for sharing, liking, commenting on, or saving our content, or for contacting us.
To find out more, click here.
