AMMAN (Reuters) – Jordan reported 634 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, its highest daily count since the start of the pandemic in March, and health officials warned the novel coronavirus was spreading fast across the country.
“This huge rise proves that personal measures from social distancing and wearing masks are crucial to protect our people,” Health Minister Saad Jaber said in a statement.
The kingdom has reported a total of 5,679 COVID-19 cases and 33 deaths form the coronavirus since the pandemic began.
Infections have quadrupled over the last month as the coronavirus resurfaced in a second wave that pushed the authorities to reintroduce new restrictions on the country’s 10 million inhabitants.
The government closed schools last Thursday for two weeks, shortly after 2 million students went back following a five-month halt after dozens of cases surfaced among students and teachers.
Restaurants, coffee shops and bars were also closed for two weeks. The authorities imposed up to a one-year prison term for any one hosting a wedding or social or public gatherings where over 20 people are present.
But Prime Minister Omar al Razzaz has said his government will not impose a full lockdown, which officials have said could have a disastrous impact on an aid-dependent economy already hard-hit by the virus.
(Reporting by Suleiman Al-Khalidi, Editing by Timothy Heritage)
