France in national lockdown from Friday | Abroad

The country had been locked up for eight weeks this spring when the pandemic first peaked, but now schools remain open, Macron said. Cafés and restaurants are closing, as are things that are not essential. Traveling between regions is not possible. People are only allowed to leave the house to run errands, visit a doctor or exercise for an hour every day. The French are only allowed to go to work if there is really no other option.

Macron stated that solutions other than a lockdown, such as striving for group immunity or protecting vulnerable people, are not possible.

“The virus is spreading at a rate that even the pessimistic expectations could not have foreseen,” said Macron, who warned that the second wave will be worse than the first and that the approach so far has not been good enough. On Tuesday, France recorded the highest daily death rate since April, at the height of the first wave, with more than 500 deaths.

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