Italy on Sunday has barred any movement within the country to slow the spread of coronavirus disease or COVID-19 as the number of fatalities rose to 5,476.
Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte ordered the halt of non-essential activities citizens and travel across municipalities except for “non-deferrable and proven business or health reasons or other urgent matters.”
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The government has dispatched police to check the streets and arrest violators.
Those who are found outside without valid reasons will be fined, the Guardian reported.
Under the new order, only supermarkets, banks, pharmacies and post offices will be allowed to remain operational while business and industries which are not essential will be closed until April 3.
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The prime minister told its citizen that their country is facing its gravest moment since World War 2.
“We will slow down the country’s productive engine, but we will not stop it,” he said.
There are 59,138 cases of COVID-19 as of Sunday.
