Tokyo extends COVID-19 restrictions until end of September

Japan has extended the state of emergency in Tokyo and 18 of the country's 47 prefectures until the end of September due to the CORONAVIRUS pandemic, Kyodo News reports.

Prime Minister Yoshihide Sugi said at a meeting of the government's working group to combat coronavirus that the decision was made due to the fact that Japanese hospitals continue to receive patients with covid-19 , many of whom are in serious condition. Restrictions will remain in the most populated prefectures, including Tokyo, Hokkaido, Fukuoka, Osaka and Aichi. In two prefectures - Miyagi and Okayama - the authorities will soften the regime, where the authority to tighten and ease restrictions will be transferred to local administrations.

Under current rules, people are advised not to leave their prefectures, avoid crowded places, restaurants are prohibited from serving ALCOHOL , they can work until 20:00 local time. In Tokyo, the COVID-restriction regime was introduced on July 12, its validity period has already been extended twice.

The decision to extend the restrictions was made by the government after a sharp drop in the approval rating of the prime minister's work - in early August it fell to a low of 28%.

The reason for the decline in popularity was the rapid spread of the Delta strain of coronavirus in the country during and after the Olympic Games held in the country.