Eastern Europe going in reverse as rising waves of virus raises alarms
Countries in eastern Europe are facing rising waves of coronavirus, leading to riots in Serbia, mandatory face masks in Croatia and travel bans imposed by Hungary.
Hungarian authorities said yesterday that they have sorted countries into three categories – red, yellow and green – based on their rates of new infections – and will impose restrictions, including entry bans and mandatory quarantines, depending on which country people arrive from.
“We see worrisome signs about an increase in the number of cases in the neighbouring countries, Europe and the whole world,” said the Prime Minister’s chief of staff. “Now, we have to protect our own security and prevent the virus from being brought in from abroad.”
Serbian health authorities are warning that hospitals are almost full due to the latest surge. Police clashed with anti-government protesters for four nights last week, demonstrations that forced the Serbian president to withdraw plans to reintroduce a coronavirus lockdown. Romania announced a record-high number of infections on Saturday, with 698, while 456 new cases were reported yesterday.
In Bulgaria, authorities reintroduced restrictions lifted a few weeks ago because of a new surge in cases.
Croatia is making wearing masks mandatory in stores beginning today.