ATHENS, December 23 (Reuters) – The Greek government has banned public Christmas and New Year celebrations and imposed outdoor masks in an attempt to slow the spread of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, the Minister of Health said on Thursday. Health.
From Friday morning, Greeks will have to wear two masks on top of each other, or a mask providing significant protection (type FFP2) to use public transport or go to supermarkets, added Thanos Plevris during a conference Press.
Foreign visitors are “strongly encouraged” to take two PCR tests a few days apart before arriving in Greece.
The Minister of Health indicated that new restrictive measures would undoubtedly be announced in early January, mainly concerning sporting events and shows, in an attempt to avoid a re-containment.
Greece has so far reported only a few dozen cases of contamination with the Omicron variant, but the government “is monitoring the situation closely,” he said.
Greek authorities reported 5,641 new cases of contamination and 69 deaths in 24 hours on Wednesday, while 65.7% of some eleven million Greeks are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. (Report Lefteris Papadimas, French version Tangi Salaün, edited by Blandine Hénault)
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