SAWT BEIRUT INTERNATIONAL

| 18 February 2025, Tuesday |

Vietnam announces 15 days lockdown in Hanoi as cases surge

Vietnam revealed a 15-day lockdown in the capital Hanoi starting Saturday as a Covid-19 infections spread from the southern Mekong Delta region.

The measures issued late Friday night, bans the gathering of more than two people in public. Only government offices, hospitals and essential businesses are allowed to stay open.

Earlier in the week, the city had stalled all outdoor activities and asked non-essential businesses to close following an increase in cases. On Friday, Hanoi reported 70 confirmed infections, the city’s highest, part of a record 7,295 cases in the country in the last 24 hours.

Nearly 5,000 of them are from Vietnam’s largest metropolis, southern Ho Chi Minh City, which has also extended its lockdown until Aug. 1.

In the latest wave of COVID-19 since April, Vietnam has recorded over 83,000 infections and 335 deaths.

The National Assembly scheduled a meeting  in Hanoi to open on Tuesday with 499 delegates will go ahead but was shortened to 12 from the original 17 days.

The delegates have been inoculated, are regularly tested for the coronavirus and are traveling in a bubble, and will be isolated at hotels, according to the National Assembly.

    Source:
  • Associated Press