Jordan lockdown ended, 13 virus cases detected

January 25, 2021 10:47

The government on Monday morning ended the lockdown restrictions on a block of streets in Jordan. The recent centre of a Covid-19 outbreak was sealed off early on Saturday

More than 7,000 people in the restricted area have undergone COVID-19 testing and so far 13 have preliminarily tested positive for the virus, the Government said Sunday.

Health Secretary Sophia Chan, said the lockdown had been effective and that lockdowns in other districts may be enforced.

“I think the compulsory testing and also the testing within an area with the restriction of movement are effective in identifying these cases, and also very quickly - as soon as possible - detecting as well as isolating these cases. Their close contacts will also be quarantined,” Chan noted.

"We will review the cases, we will look at the criteria and also the considerations - including public health considerations, the number of confirmed cases, plus the environmental factors, " she added.

However, an epidemiologist has cast doubt on the effectiveness of further lockdowns.

Benjamin Cowling of the University of Hong Kong's school of public health told RTHK that the 13 cases uncovered were only a minority of the total and transmission could continue in other parts of the city.

"We've seen this sort of approach being used very successfully in mainland China but it's used in a quite different way, where they'll lock down and test everybody probably two times, not just once, with the aim of getting infections to zero very, very quickly. That's not what's been done in Hong Kong," Cowling pointed out.

A return to normality will hinge on vaccination programme, Cowling said. Government officials are targeting to begin vaccination next month after the Lunar New Year Holiday.

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