Village in northeastern Greece under virus lockdown

ATHENS

A village in northeastern Greece was put on a seven-day lockdown early Thursday following 73 new COVID-19 cases and four deaths over the last week.

Deputy Civil Protection Minister Nikos Hardalias made the decision after a late-night meeting with officials in the Xanthi region, which has a large ethnic Turkish population,

Under the lockdown, residents of the village of Echinos (also known as Sahin) are asked to stay at home till June 25, while all shops will be closed except for pharmacies and supermarkets, and use of masks in public is compulsory.

This is the third time the village of about 2,500 has been placed under lockdown after a spike in COVID-19 cases.

Xanthi is part of Greece’s Western Thrace region, which has a population of some 150,000 Muslim Turks dating back centuries.

The total number of confirmed cases in Greece on Thursday rose to 3,203 while 187 deaths have also been confirmed, days before the country reopens its borders to all international flights on July 1.