People wearing protective face masks shop amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Athens, Greece
PARIS, Jan 1 (NNN-AGENCIES) — France reported 232,200 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, the highest-ever recorded total.
New infections over the last 24 hours were above 200,000 for the third day running, making France one of the epicentres as a wave of infections linked to the Omicron variant sweeps across Europe.
Infections in France, one of the countries carrying out widespread testing, stood well above the tally recorded in Italy and Britain, which also reported new records on Friday, with 144,243 and 106,122 cases respectively.
In Paris, the traditional New Year’s Eve fireworks display centred on the Arc de Triomphe and the Champs d’Elysees has been cancelled because city authorities said they feared it would lead to large crowds of people unable to observe social distancing.
People can still see in the New Year in private homes without restrictions. Bars, cafes and restaurants will be open as normal, though they have been told they must close by 0200 am on Jan 1, and that they can only serve customers who are seated.
Dancing at hospitality venues and nightclubs has been forbidden.
ATHENS: Greece reported 40,560 COVID-19 cases on Friday, setting a new record high for the fourth successive day following a surge of cases of the Omicron coronavirus variant.
Health authorities said 76 deaths had been reported on Friday.
Greece introduced new restrictions this week, ordering bars, restaurants and nightclubs to close at midnight, with no standing customers and no music. An exception is New Year’s Eve, when establishments can close at 2 a.m.
The country of 11 million people has reported 1,210,853 infections since the first case was detected in February 2020 and 20,790 COVID-related deaths. — NNN-AGENCIES
