São Paulo – Lebanon’s government announced this Monday (27) that it will resume a nationwide lockdown. The decision was made during a meeting of the Coronavirus Follow-Up Committee chaired by prime minister Hassan Diab. The National News Agency (NNA) reported that Public Health minister Hamad Hassan recommended that activity be halted for two weeks as the number of Covid-19 cases escalated. A full lockdown will be in place from July 30 to August 3 and from August 6 to 10.
Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport reopened for commercial flights on July 1. There have been 3,879 confirmed coronavirus cases in Lebanon so far, 132 of which were registered on Sunday (26), as per Ministry of Health data. Minister of Interior and Municipalities Mohammad Fahmi said establishments across the country will be closed, including institutions, private companies and banks. Exceptions will be made for hospitals and security, military, industrial, agricultural and media institutions, plus the airport.
Some establishments will remain closed for longer periods of time. According to Fahmi, bars and nightclubs will not open from July 28 to August 10. The same holds true of convention centers, markets, parks, movie theaters and religious centers. Restaurants and cafés will operate at 50% capacity. The government has also called on all citizens 65 or older to stay home and avoid interpersonal contact.
A statement from the Coronavirus Follow-Up Committee also noted that as of July 28, all travelers coming from countries with low infection rates will be required to take a PCR test followed by a 48-hour quarantine as they await their test results.
Travelers from high infection rate countries will take a PCR and then observe a quarantine for as long as 48 hours in one of the hotels designated by the Ministry of Tourism. The Ministry of Interior and Municipalities said these travelers will be required to download a tracking application upon arriving in Lebanon.
From July 31 on, all incoming travelers will need to supply a negative PCR test for Covid-19 taken ‘no less than 96 hours prior to traveling.’
Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum