Netherlands ‘going into lockdown again’ to curb omicron

LONDON (AP) — Nations crossed Europe moved to reimpose tougher measures to stem a caller question of COVID-19 infections spurred by the highly transmissible omicron variant, with the Netherlands starring the mode by imposing a nationwide lockdown.

All non-essential stores, bars and restaurants successful the Netherlands volition beryllium closed until Jan. 14 starting Sunday, caretaker Prime Minister Mark Rutte said astatine a hastily arranged property league Saturday night. Schools and universities volition unopen until Jan. 9, helium said.

In what is surely to beryllium a large disappointment, the lockdown presumption besides rein successful backstage vacation celebrations. Residents lone volition beryllium permitted 2 visitors but for Christmas and New Year’s, erstwhile 4 volition beryllium allowed, according to Rutte.

“The Netherlands is going into lockdown again from tomorrow,” helium said, adding that the determination was “unavoidable due to the fact that of the 5th question caused by the omicron variant that is bearing down connected us.”

It wasn’t conscionable the Dutch seeking to dilatory the dispersed of omicron. Alarmed ministers successful France, Cyprus and Austria tightened question restrictions. Paris canceled its New Year’s Eve fireworks. Denmark has closed theaters, performance halls, amusement parks and museums. Ireland imposed an 8 p.m. curfew connected pubs and bars and constricted attendance astatine indoor and outdoor events.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan underscored the authoritative interest astir the climbing cases and their imaginable to overwhelm the wellness attraction strategy by declaring a large incidental Saturday, a determination that allows section councils successful Britain’s superior to coordinate enactment much intimately with exigency services.

Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin captured the consciousness of the continent successful an code to the nation, saying the caller restrictions were needed to support lives and livelihoods from the resurgent virus.

“None of this is easy,” Martin said Friday night. “We are each exhausted with COVID and the restrictions it requires. The twists and turns, the disappointments and the frustrations instrumentality a dense toll connected everyone. But it is the world that we are dealing with.”

The World Health Organization reported Saturday that the omicron variant of the coronavirus has been detected successful 89 countries, and COVID-19 cases involving the variant are doubling each 1.5 to 3 days successful places with assemblage transmission and not conscionable infections acquired abroad.

Major questions astir omicron stay unanswered, including however effectual existing COVID-19 vaccines are against it and whether the variant produces terrible unwellness successful galore infected individuals, WHO noted.

Yet omicron’s “substantial maturation advantage” implicit the delta variant means it is apt to soon overtake delta arsenic the ascendant signifier of the microorganism successful countries wherever the caller variant is spreading locally, the U.N. wellness bureau said.

In the Netherlands, shoppers fearing the worst swarmed to commercialized areas of Dutch cities earlier Saturday, reasoning it mightiness beryllium their past accidental to bargain Christmas gifts.

Rotterdam municipality tweeted that it was “too engaged successful the center” of the larboard metropolis and told people: “Don’t travel to the city.” Amsterdam besides warned that the city’s main buying thoroughfare was engaged and urged radical to instrumentality to coronavirus rules.

“I tin perceive the full of the Netherlands sighing,” Rutte said successful his lockdown announcement. “All this, precisely 1 week earlier Christmas. Another Christmas that is wholly antithetic from what we want. Very atrocious quality again for each those businesses and taste institutions that trust connected the holidays.”

The caput of the Dutch nationalist wellness institute, Jaap van Dissel, described the shutdown arsenic a preventative determination that would “buy time” for much radical to get booster vaccines and for the nation’s wellness attraction strategy to hole for a imaginable caller surge successful infections.

In the U.K., wherever confirmed regular cases soared to grounds numbers this week, the authorities has reimposed a request for masks to beryllium worn indoors and ordered radical to amusement impervious of vaccination oregon a caller antagonistic coronavirus trial erstwhile going to nightclubs and ample events.

But the moves caused anger.

Critics of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s latest coronavirus restrictions flooded Oxford Street, a fashionable London buying area, connected Saturday. The maskless protesters blew whistles, yelled “Freedom!” and told passersby to region their look coverings.

Hundreds of radical blocked postulation arsenic they marched with signs bearing slogans specified arsenic “Vaccine passports termination our freedoms” and “Don’t comply.” Other signs had the faces of Johnson oregon U.K. Health Secretary Sajid Javid and read, “Give them the boot.”

Scientists are informing the British authorities it needs to spell further to forestall hospitals from being overwhelmed. Leaked minutes from the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies suggested a prohibition connected indoor mixing and hospitality, the BBC reported.

Britain and different nations are besides accelerating the gait of booster shots aft aboriginal information showed that 2 doses of vaccine were little effectual against the omicron variant. Shopping centers, cathedrals and shot stadiums successful Britain person been converted into wide vaccination centers.

Omicron is present the ascendant coronavirus variant successful London, and efforts were stepped up to scope radical who haven’t yet been vaccinated oregon boosted.

The politician said during a sojourn to a wide vaccination pop-up session astatine London shot squad Chelsea’s stadium that nationalist services ranging from ambulances to constabulary calls could beryllium impeded by the rapidly spreading variant.

“The large contented we person is the fig of Londoners who person this virus, and that’s starring to large issues successful narration to unit absences and the quality of our nationalist services to tally astatine the optimum levels,″ Khan told the BBC.

In France, the authorities announced that it volition commencement giving the vaccine to children successful the 5 to 11 property radical opening Wednesday.

Prime Minister Jean Castex said Friday that with the omicron variant spreading similar “lightning,” the authorities projected requiring impervious of vaccination from individuals entering restaurants, cafes and different nationalist establishments. The enactment requires parliamentary approval.

Thousands of opponents of vaccine requirements and disguise mandates protested Saturday successful Hamburg, Berlin, Düsseldorf and different German cities. In Austria, section media reported the crowds swelled to tens of thousands.

Corder reported from The Hague, Netherlands. Courtney Bonnell successful London; Emily Schultheis successful Vienna; and Thomas Adamson successful Paris, contributed to this report.