Panafrican News Agency

Coronavirus: Tunisia imposes new lockdown due to spread of the Omicron variant

Tunis, Tunisia (PANA) - Due to the resurgence of the coronavirus pandemic, the Tunisian government on Wednesday re-imposed a night curfew and canceled or postponed all public events or closed spaces.

According to an official statement, this measure will come into force on Thursday from 10pm to 5am, for a period of two weeks, renewable,  depending on the evolution of the health situation.

After a lull occasioned by an intensive vaccination campaign which allowed the curfew decreed at the height of the epidemic to be lifted, the epidemiological curve has peaked in recent days.

According to a report published by the Ministry of Health, the rate of positive tests carried out rose from around 2% a month ago to more than 24%.

The health situation has been described as "worrying" by several members of the scientific committee for the fight against the coronavirus, particularly because of the strong spread of the Omicron variant, 33 cases of which were detected a week ago.

As for the number of deaths caused by Covid-19, it has increased fivefold, from two deaths at the beginning of January to more than 20 last Tuesday, bringing the total number of deaths to 25,655 since the beginning of the epidemic, one of the highest figures in Africa.

A committee official, Mahjoub Ouni, believes that the Omicron variant will dominate in the coming weeks.

The authorities have also decided to strengthen border control measures and recommend avoiding travel abroad unless necessary.

At the same time, they plan to intensify vaccination campaigns.

-0- PANA BB/IS/BBA/VAO 12Jan2022