A woman wearing a face mask and holding a pair of disposable gloves walks past the Trocadero Square near the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France, Oct. 23, 2020. (Xinhua/Gao Jing)
-- France to go into national lockdown from Friday
-- Germany to implement tighter COVID-19 restrictions
-- UK records another 24,701 coronavirus cases with 310 deaths
-- Poland reports record daily COVID-19 cases of 18,820
BRUSSELS, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The following are the latest developments of the COVID-19 pandemic in European countries.
PARIS -- France will go into national lockdown starting from Friday to stem the second wave of the coronavirus epidemic, President Emmanuel Macron announced on Wednesday evening.
For the new lockdown, the only authorized out-of-home trips will be "to go to work, to a medical appointment, to provide assistance, to go shopping or to take the air," said Macron in a televised address to the nation.
Unlike during the first lockdown, nurseries, primary schools and middle schools will remain open, said Macron, as "our children would not be lastingly deprived of education, of contact with the school system."
A cyclist wearing a face mask is seen in Berlin, capital of Germany, Oct. 22, 2020. (Xinhua/Shan Yuqi)
BERLIN -- Germany's federal and state governments have agreed to introduce sweeping contact restrictions on everyday life -- effective Nov. 2 -- to curb the steep rise of COVID-19 infections, the German Press Agency (dpa) reported on Wednesday.
Only members of the same household plus those of an additional household with a maximum of ten people would be allowed to meet in public, the dpa learned from a video conference Chancellor Angela Merkel held with the minister-presidents of the federal states.
Entertainment and leisure activities would be largely prohibited throughout Germany as theaters, operas and concert venues would have to close until the end of the month, according to the dpa. The ban would also apply to bars and restaurants.
A woman walks across a footbridge in the city center of Manchester, Britain, Oct. 23, 2020. (Photo by Jon Super/Xinhua)
LONDON -- Another 24,701 people in Britain have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 942,275, according to official figures released Wednesday.
The coronavirus-related deaths in Britain rose by 310 to 45,675, the data showed.
The latest figures were released as British Prime Minister Boris Johnson faces increasing pressure to tighten lockdown measures while infections surge across the country.
Nottinghamshire in northern England is expected to join the millions of people already under the highest level of Tier Three restrictions on Friday, while Nottingham City, Broxtowe, Gedling and Rushcliffe will move into the top level from 12:01 a.m. (0001 GMT) on Thursday.
Two elderly women wearing face masks are seen at a park in Warsaw, Poland, Oct. 23, 2020. (Photo by Jaap Arriens/Xinhua)
WARSAW -- The daily COVID-19 cases in Poland hit a record high of 18,820, bringing the country's total to 299,049, the Ministry of Health said on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, 236 people have died from the virus-caused disease during the past day, bringing the country's death toll to 4,851.
Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki told Gazeta Polska weekly that the government is seeking a balance between protecting the health and lives of citizens and supporting the economy.■
