The technical committee monitoring COVID-19 measures has denied the news circulated by media and social media about the extension of the lockdown for ten days.
The National News Agency reported the committee's statement refuting claims made by some media outlets and social media concerning a recommendation made by the committee after a meeting today to extend the lockdown for ten days. The statement clarified that the committee did not hold any meeting today and no recommendations were issued, thus the news attributed to them is unfounded.
The website "Al-Siyasah" had published that there was unanimous agreement within the COVID-19 committee to extend the lockdown by ten days, with plans for a gradual reopening of the country after February 18. It is worth noting that the newspaper "Al-Akhbar" published an article titled "The Major Outbreak Does Not Reduce Infections," mentioning that the complete lockdown has entered its third week while the positivity rate of COVID-19 tests still exceeds 20%. According to World Health Organization recommendations, this rate should not exceed 5% for two full weeks before making the decision to reopen the country.
The article published by Al-Akhbar stated that out of approximately 14,500 tests, the Ministry of Health recorded 3,125 infections (5 of them imported) and 59 deaths, raising the total number of pandemic casualties to 2,680. The relative "decline" in infections is primarily attributed to the reduction in the number of tests, while intensive care units remain crowded with critical cases, totaling 951 at night, indicating that it is still premature to discuss positive outcomes in containing the virus.
It added: "Does this mean the lockdown will be extended? According to sources in the Ministry of Health, the study of this option is not currently on the table, while Araji stated that doctors' opinions will take shape on February 5, 'with actions to be taken considering the resilience of residents if an extension is decided.'”
Al-Akhbar noted that discussions about extending the lockdown beyond February 8 are linked to the expectation that the arrival of the first batch of vaccines at the beginning of next month will not be sufficient to curb infections, especially in light of claims that community immunity will not be achieved until next fall, necessitating the continuation of the lifestyle imposed by the virus, in terms of wearing masks, avoiding gatherings, and adhering to preventive measures.
