SOFIA (Reuters) – Bulgaria extended its soft lockdown until the end of January to contain the spread of coronavirus infections that spiked in the autumn and strained the Balkan country’s poorly funded healthcare system, the government said on Thursday.
The restrictions, which were due to end on Dec. 21, have helped decrease the surge in new infections, but the country of 7 million people still has one of the highest COVID-19 death rates per 100,000 people in the European Union.
Secondary schools, shopping malls, restaurants, clubs and cafes and gyms will remain closed, while kindergartens and primary schools will reopen after the New Year holidays, the government said in a statement.
(Reporting by Tsvetelia Tsolova; Editing by Alex Richardson)
