Dutch police used water cannons against demonstrators in The Hague. Dutch police used water cannons to disperse protesters in The Hague against the partial lockdown imposed by authorities due to a sharp increase in Covid-19 cases.
Clashes with the police are rare in Dutch society, but according to the protesters, in this case it is a serious violation of freedoms, which they say is unjustified at this stage of the pandemic. However, according to official figures, the intensive care units in Dutch hospitals are currently almost 40% full, and the government sees every reason to step up the measures.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced the new restrictions on Friday, which came into effect on Saturday evening. As one of the demonstrators told the Russian service of the BBC, the authorities knew how their decision would be perceived by society, so they announced it as late as possible. Just last weekend, thousands of people marched through The Hague in protest against the existing restrictions. The new partial lockdown will last three weeks and consists of the following measures Serious restrictions were also imposed on food delivery services. The industry reacted angrily, with one of its representatives stating in an interview with one of the largest broadcasters, NOS, that the government had crossed the line.
Dutch police say public order has been restored in the city. However, the authorities based their decision on statistics from recent weeks, which show that the number of COVID-19 cases in the country is steadily increasing. On Saturday, more than 13.9 thousand new cases were registered – the third highest daily number since the beginning of the pandemic. 33 people have died. At the same time, the vaccination rate in the Netherlands is quite high, with 82.4% of the population aged 12 years and older fully vaccinated. We explain quickly, simply, and clearly what happened, why it matters, and what happens next. The number of episodes should remain the same. End of story
Podcast Advertising Last week, the WHO declared Europe the epicenter of the new coronavirus outbreak. Strong increases in incidence are observed in many countries, particularly Germany, Austria, Denmark, Greece, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Russia, and others. Beginning Monday, some regions of Austria will implement a quarantine for unvaccinated or partially vaccinated citizens. The measure is to restrict freedom of movement for this category compared to fully vaccinated individuals. Critics, however, believe that it will be almost impossible to control its implementation. Especially since in Austria it is already forbidden to enter most public places without a vaccination pass. Germany, where one of the daily indicators reached a record 50,000 cases last week, declared Austria a high-risk zone and imposed a 10-day quarantine on arrivals without vaccination or proof of previous illness. Denmark, which in September lifted all covid restrictions, including vaccine passports, is again implementing a series of measures due to a surge in infections. In Great Britain, on Saturday, coronavirus was detected in more than 38.5 thousand people, 157 infected people died. The infection rate in the country continues to rise, while the mortality rate has decreased by 7.9% in the last month.
In most countries, it is no longer mandatory to wear masks outdoors. While in Western Europe, as the incidence of disease increases, mortality rates either decrease or remain at minimal levels, both indicators are increasing in Eastern European countries. The WHO links this to low vaccination coverage in this part of the continent. On Friday, over 40.1 thousand new cases and 1235 deaths from Covid-19 were registered in Russia. This is the highest number of deaths in a single day during the entire pandemic. In Ukraine – over 24 thousand new cases of infection per day, 750 deaths. In Romania, 307 people have died in the past 24 hours, 286 of whom were unvaccinated. In Slovenia, there are 215 people in intensive care units – a record number for a country of more than two million people. In the Czech Republic, the number of infected people has tripled in the last week to over 10,000, including Saturday’s statistics. The country’s government is preparing to tighten existing restrictions and possibly introduce a number of new ones.