DUBAI (Reuters) – Gulf state Bahrain will reintroduce restrictions on Sunday for two weeks to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus after a sharp rise in cases over the past month.
The kingdom has ordered indoor gyms, sports halls and swimming pools to close and social gatherings in homes to be limited to up to 30 people until Feb. 21, state news agency BNA reported on Friday.
It is also limiting outdoor group exercise to 30 people, while government institutions and entities must allow up to 70% of employees to work from home.
The small island state last week banned indoor dining at restaurants and cafes and moved schools to remote learning after detecting a new variant of COVID-19.
The kingdom reported 704 new cases on Friday, compared with 229 infections a month ago on Jan. 5.
In total, Bahrain has had 105,119 cases and 377 deaths. Neighbouring Gulf states Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have all recently reimposed restrictions in response to an increasing number of infections.
(Writing by Alexander Cornwell; Editing by Alex Richardson)
