Japan's Ibaraki Prefecture To Declare COVID-19 Emergency Following Neighbors' Lead - Head

Muhammad Irfan Published January 15, 2021 | 06:20 PM

TOKYO (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 15th January, 2021) The authorities of Japan's Ibaraki prefecture have decided to independently declare a state of emergency on its territory amid a surge in�COVID-19 cases over the past two weeks, following suit of other prefectures, Kazuhiko Oigawa, the governor of Ibaraki, said on Friday.

Earlier this week, Japanese media reported that the state of emergency declared in Tokyo, Kanagawa, Saitama and Chiba last week was going to be expanded to three more prefectures � Osaka, Kyoto and Hyogo. The Japanese prefectures of Aichi, Gifu and Mie also followed suit.

"In connection with the current situation, the Ibaraki prefecture intends to independently declare a state of emergency for the period from Monday [January 18] to February 7," Oigawa said at a press conference.

Japan is in the midst of an unprecedented wave of COVID-19 transmissions, having registered over 5,000 new cases daily since January 7. The current nationwide tally exceeds 302,000 cases, including 4,233 deaths.

In a bid to contain the spread of the virus, Japan's Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare on Friday held a meeting to discuss introducing harsher punishments, including a prison term of up to one year, for violators of coronavirus restrictions.