The decision seeks to curb the surge of COVID-19 cases following the worrisome increase of contamination over the past two weeks.

The Moroccan government decided to strengthen lockdown measures, starting Friday, July 23, following the exponential surge of COVID-19 cases.

The government said the night curfew (11 p.m. and  4:30 a.m.) will be maintained in keeping with the recommendations of the Scientific and Technical Committee.

The measures seek to strengthen the necessary preventive measures to limit the spread of the COVID-19.

A government statement emphasized that movement after 11 is banned at the national level.

Persons working in vital and essential sectors and those in need of urgent medical care are excluded from this ban.

The government decided to reinforce restrictions on intercity travel unless travelers present a   vaccination certificate. 

With the new decision,  restaurants, cafes, theaters, swimming pools, and other public venues must operate at 50 percent of their capacity. 

The statement emphasized that gatherings and activities in open spaces that include more than 50 people have to be authorized through a permit from local authorities.

The government concluded that the threat of the pandemic "still exists and continues unabated, especially with the emergence of new strains" in Morocco.

Over the past two weeks, Morocco recorded between 1,000 and 2,000 cases, with the Delta variant representing 50 percent of new cases.

The  government stressed that “the current situation requires     strict adherence to all directives of the public authorities and all the precautionary measures adopted by the health authorities, in terms of physical distancing."

Source: Morocco World News