Government announces stricter lockdown ahead of school openings

The Greek government announced a one-week closure of all the retail businesses that were allowed to open during the holidays, as well as all closure of all houses of worship, to prepare for the reopening of schools.

The decision was taken by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and the government for "precautionary reasons," and to avoid increasing the viral load so that schools of all levels can open on January 11, according to government spokesman Stelios Petsas who made the announcement on Saturday.

The restrictions mean that the "click-and-collect' model, whereby customers physically pick up merchandise they have bought online or by phone at store entrances, will be suspended, while hairdressers, nail salons and bookshops will close.

Fishing and hunting will also be banned.

At the same time, Petsas said that the nightly curfew will return to 9 p.m. to...