Tens of millions of people were confined in China on Wednesday due to a resurgence of COVID-19, raising fears in Shanghai of the return of tighter restrictions. China’s largest city was locked down for two months during the spring and the strict conditions imposed exasperated much of the population of 25 million.
Since June 1, most restrictions have been lifted, but some neighborhoods remain temporarily closed after the detection of new cases.
Authorities report an increase in infections since the weekend. They launched a new round of mass testing in half of Shanghai’s districts. Today, Wednesday, the karaoke bars were closed after detecting some infections originating from them.
Five weeks after the lifting of the confinement, a part of the inhabitants fear that the restrictions will return. The Health Ministry reported 300 new cases on Wednesday across the country.
The main affected area is Anhui province in eastern China, where 1.7 million people in two rural cantons are currently confined.
More than a thousand cases have been registered since last week, with infections now reaching Jiangsu province. The large city of Xian, in the north, with 13 million inhabitants, where the famous Terracotta Warriors are located, was placed under “temporary control measures” after 29 infections were detected since Saturday.
The government closed entertainment venues (pubs, internet cafes and karaoke bars) from midnight on Wednesday. Chinese media showed images of X’an residents queuing for tests. The authorities insist that the city is not confined.
