[NEWS] Italy plans to extend the state of emergency until the end of the year

[YaKuZa--BoSs]

In principle, it ended on July 31, but its continuation is needed "to keep the virus under control," says Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte.

 

 

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced today that it is studying to extend the state of emergency due to the coronavirus until the end of the year, which should end on July 31.

"The conditions reasonably exist to continue the coronavirus emergency beyond July 31," Conte said in statements to reporters.

The state of emergency "is needed to keep the virus under control. Not everything has been decided yet, but it will reasonably go in this direction," he stressed.

The head of the government thus confirmed press reports that the government, at the indication of the technical scientific committee that advises him on this crisis and the Ministry of Health, had decided to extend the provision, which expires on July 31.

Italy declared a state of emergency on January 31 after detecting the first positives with coronavirus, a pair of Chinese tourists in Rome, and for a period of six months.

With this, the executive can allocate funds for the fight against the virus and adopt measures by decree, such as confinement and restrictions on the movement of people, among others.

Italy is in full swing of these restrictions, but outbreaks have already emerged in various parts of the country and the Government underlines that the key is to follow a cautious policy.

Yesterday, Thursday, the Minister of Health, Roberto Speranza, signed an ordinance to prohibit people from thirteen "countries at risk" from entering the country due to the coronavirus pandemic, including five Latin Americans: Chile, Peru, Brazil, Panama and the Dominican Republic . In addition, Armenia, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bosnia Herzegovina, Kuwait, North Macedonia, Moldova and Oman.

Specifically, the ordinance provides "the prohibition of entry or transit into Italy to people who in the last fourteen days have been or passed" through the aforementioned countries.

To guarantee this provision, direct and indirect flights to and from these states are suspended.

"In the world the pandemic is in its most acute phase and we cannot harm the sacrifices of the Italians in these months. For this reason we have chosen the line of maximum prudence," Minister Speranza said in a statement.

Last Tuesday, the Italian government already suspended flights from Bangladesh, registering an increase in cases of coronaviruses imported from that country, especially in Rome.

Italy now has 242,363 coronavirus infections, of which 34,926 people have died since the first local case was confirmed on February 21 in Lombardy (north).