Friday lockdown reinstated, curfew hours extended

AMMAN — The government on Wednesday decided to reinstate Friday lockdown in addition to extending daily curfew by two hours as part of coronavirus-containment measures.

During a press conference on Wednesday evening, Minister of State for Media Affairs Ali Al Ayed announced that businesses are allowed to operate until 9:00pm while public movement will be permitted from 6:00am until 10:00pm as of Thursday. 

Awqaf Minister Mohammad Khalaileh said that worshippers will be allowed to go to mosques on Friday on foot with the prayer time to be announced on Thursdays. 

The minister called on worshippers to abide by public safety measures, notably bringing a prayer mat, maintaining physical distancing and wearing face masks.

Health Minister Nathir Obeidat said that the number of coronavirus cases has been on the rise since three weeks, saying that the new measures were reinstated to curb the spread of the virus. 

Obeidat added that the British-identified variant of the virus is spreading in Amman and nearby governorates, expecting the mutant coronavirus strain to spread to other governorates in the coming weeks.  

He said that the strict and swift containment measures will help prevent more infections, deaths and pressure on the healthcare system. 

The Kingdom on Wednesday recorded 22 COVID deaths and 4,024 infections, increasing the caseload to 376,441. The new fatalities took the Kingdom’s coronavirus death toll to 4,611.