BRUSSELS, Oct. 8 (Xinhua) -- As a new wave of COVID-19 infections has hit Europe, countries on the continent are strengthening their restrictive measures as the World Health Organization's European division called for collective commitment to addressing pandemic fatigue.
Strict anti-COVID-19 measures including the mandatory use of face masks everywhere will be reintroduced in Italy starting on Thursday in an effort to curb a rising trend in infections registered in recent weeks.
The Italian cabinet passed on Wednesday a specific decree that will keep such rules in place until at least Oct. 31, as new active infections in the country rose to 62,576 as of Wednesday from about 12,700 on Aug. 6, according to the Health Ministry. Meanwhile, the cabinet decided to prolong the state of emergency to Jan. 31, 2021.
The decree also requires travelers entering Italy from Britain, Belgium, and the Netherlands to undergo a swab test for the coronavirus.
People found disregarding restrictions would be subjected to fines ranging from 400 euros (471 U.S. dollars) to 1,000 euros.
The Senate of Berlin decided on Tuesday to introduce stricter COVID-19 rules, such as a curfew and new contact restrictions. The measures will come into force on Saturday and will initially last until Oct. 31.
The curfew in Berlin, during which all stores, bars and restaurants must be closed, will be in effect from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. local time.
Four districts in Berlin were already classified as risk areas by the federal state of Schleswig-Holstein because the number of new infections within a week exceeded 50 per 100,000 inhabitants.
Ireland is partially locked down as a number of new restrictive measures triggered by rising COVID-19 cases in the country came into effect on Wednesday.
The new rules will last for three weeks and could be extended if they fail to curb the spread of the virus in the country.
One of the measures, which is part of what the government calls a Level-3 response, prohibits people from leaving their own county except for work or other essential purposes.
Under the Level-3 response, non-essential international travel is banned. All indoor museums, galleries, cinemas and other cultural attractions in the country are ordered closed and libraries are available only for e-services.
Restaurants, cafes, bars and pubs can only provide outdoor service to a maximum of 15 people in addition to take-away and delivery services.
Ireland has witnessed a resurgence of COVID-19 cases over the last couple of months. As of Tuesday, Ireland registered a total of 38,973 confirmed cases of COVID-19, with 1,811 fatalities, according to the Department of Health.
Another 14,162 people in Britain have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 544,275, according to official figures released Wednesday.
At British Prime Minister's Questions at the House of Commons (lower house of parliament) on Wednesday, Boris Johnson hinted that tougher measures could be needed in London and the Midlands as the main opposition Labour party leader Keir Starmer suggested 19 of the 20 areas subjected to local measures for two months had seen infection rates increase.
Also on Wednesday, Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced to further strengthen the restriction measures to fight the rising coronavirus cases in the region.
Under the new measures, all pubs and restaurants across central Scotland are to be closed from 6:00 p.m. local time on Friday until Oct. 25.
The latest move came as Scotland recorded more than 1,000 new confirmed coronavirus cases in a single day for the first time, although the enhanced testing capacity means more cases could be detected than at the height of the pandemic earlier in the year.
French President Emmanuel Macron is mulling more restrictions to contain the coronavirus epidemic as the country recorded nearly 19,000 new infections on Wednesday, an all-time high for new daily cases.
"In places where the virus is circulating too quickly, notably among the elderly, and where we see more and more beds in emergencies occupied, we must move towards more restrictions as we did in the Bouches-du-Rhone and Paris and its inner suburbs," Macron said in a televised interview.
Health Minister Olivier Veran will unveil the new package of measures on Thursday, he added.
Early this week, Paris and three surrounding departments were placed on maximum alert with extra measures, including closure of bars, pools and gyms. Entertainment facilities including circus, dance clubs, trade shows are banned.
As countries across the region are reporting rising levels of COVID-19 fatigue, the WHO Regional Office for Europe on Tuesday shared regional experience and called for collective commitment to addressing pandemic fatigue.
"Based on aggregated survey data from countries across the region, we can see, not surprisingly, that fatigue among those surveyed is increasing," said Hans Kluge, WHO regional director for Europe, in a statement on Tuesday.
Meantime, Kluge cited innovations in Denmark and Norway that were addressing "individual experiences and cultural nuances" as courageous approaches, with empathy at their core, saying these innovations are able to "get us through this crisis."
In a newly released framework of "Pandemic fatigue -- Reinvigorating the public to prevent COVID-19," WHO Europe provides key considerations for the planning and implementation of national and subnational strategies to maintain and reinvigorate public support to prevent COVID-19.
"WHO will establish an ongoing forum to drive action and inform local COVID-19 responses that engage communities and meet the needs of our populations," said Kluge. Enditem
