France announces new national coronavirus lockdown

France is returning to a nationwide lockdown amid rising coronavirus infections, President Emmanuel Macron announced Wednesday.

The restrictions, which are set to kick in at midnight Thursday and will last until mid-December with period reviews before then, are similar to the country's previous lockdown this spring — people will only be able to leave their home for work purposes if remote work is not feasible, buy essential goods, seek medical attention, and exercise for one hour a day. Unlike the earlier iteration, however, schools and nurseries will remain open for the most part. Funerals and visits to care homes will be allowed, as well.

Several European countries are experiencing a second wave of rising, often record-breaking coronavirus infections along with France, including Germany, whose Chancellor Angela Merkel on Wednesday also announced new restrictions aimed at curbing the virus' spread. For at least the next four weeks, restaurants, bars, and other leisure and cultural facilities will be ordered to close, and contacts are to be reduced to a maximum of two households and no more than 10 people. Like France, schools and nurseries will remain open, as will the majority of businesses and work places, The Guardian reports. Read more at The Guardian.

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