Czech President hospitalised due to Covid-19, Christmas markets banned as cases surge

On Thursday, the Czech government ordered bars and clubs to close at 10 pm and prohibited Christmas markets, to combat one of the world’s highest rates of coronavirus infection,

The new regulations also limit the number of persons who can attend cultural and sporting events to 1,000, in places where infection rates are considerably higher.

President Milos Zeman was sent to hospital after testing positive for the coronavirus just hours after the new rules were announced, despite local media reports that he displayed no symptoms.

According to Our World in Data, the Czech Republic registered more than 25,000 new cases on Tuesday, a new high, and an average of 1,516 daily COVID-19 cases per million population during the past week, the third highest in the world behind Slovakia and Austria.

Daily infections and hospital admissions are anticipated to climb further, according to Health Minister Adam Vojtech, but the government hopes that the new measures will avert the need for stricter restrictions.

The limitations on pubs and activities are in addition to previous prohibitions on those who have not been vaccinated or recovered with COVID-19 from entering locations such as pubs, restaurants, theatres, hairdressers and gyms.