Iceland to lift virus restrictions earlier than planned

Iceland announced Friday it will ease some coronavirus restrictions at the weekend—including limits on crowd numbers and restaurant opening hours—before lifting all measures at the end of the month, two weeks ahead of schedule.

From midnight on Saturday, the limit on the number of people allowed to gather in public will increase from 50 to 200, and sports centres and ski resorts will be allowed to operate at full capacity, the government said.

Bars, restaurants and discos will be allowed to stay open until 1:00 am.

Then, from February 25, the remainder of pandemic restrictions will be lifted, including the limit on crowd numbers and the obligation to wear a mask, as long as no new virus variant emerges and the number of cases does not overwhelm the country's healthcare system, the government said.

© 2022 AFP