Dutch government has imposed a partial lockdown.
Gatekeepers News reports that the Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte has announced a three-week partial lockdown amid surging COVID-19 cases in the Netherlands.
Rutte said his government wants to “deliver a hard blow to the virus.”
The lockdown that begins Saturday night is the first to start in Western Europe since a new wave of infections began surging across parts of the continent.
Rutte also said that social distancing is returning. Masks are already widely mandated, including in shops and public transport.
Rutte also confirmed that a World Cup soccer qualifier between the Netherlands and Norway on Tuesday in Rotterdam would be played behind closed doors.
He noted that “under the lockdown, bars, restaurants and supermarkets will have to close at 8 p.m. (1900 GMT), professional sports matches will be played in empty stadiums and people are being urged to work from home as much as possible. Stores selling non-essential items will have to close at 6 p.m.”
“Tonight we have a very unpleasant message with very unpleasant and far-reaching decisions,” Rutte said.
