Spanish Court Rejects Lockdown As Europe Faces Virus Surge

Madrid, Oct 8 (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 9th Oct, 2020 ) :Madrid's top court struck down virus restrictions on millions in the Spanish capital on Thursday, while France put four more cities on its highest alert as European governments battled to control a sustained surge in virus cases.

Cafes have faced tightening curfews or been shuttered altogether across major European cities in recent days, while Austria and Poland became the latest to toughen their rules on mask-wearing and other measures.

With France recording a new record of 18,746 daily cases on Wednesday, it placed Lille, Lyon, Grenoble and Saint-Etienne on maximum alert -- joining Paris and Aix-Marseille in having to shut all bars and place stricter demands on restaurants.

Records are tumbling across the continent -- even in Germany, which has been praised for its handling of the crisis but which logged more than 4,000 new cases in a day for the first time since April.

"It's possible that the virus will spread uncontrollably," said Lothar Wieler, the head of Germany's Robert Koch Institute for disease control.

Spain's anti-virus strategy was thrown into confusion on Thursday when judges refused to approve a lockdown order, arguing that the central health ministry had acted beyond its powers in imposing the measures because health policy is devolved to local governments.

Officials scrambled to get back on track, pleading with residents not to leave the city despite the court ruling -- especially with a long weekend approaching for Spain's National Day -- but police have no legal grounds for issuing fines for non-compliance and the order is in effect void.