ATHENS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 30th March, 2020) The Cypriot Ministry of Health has urged citizens to limit their social activity as 35 new cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in the country, raising the overall total since the start of the outbreak to 214.
The latest figures were confirmed by Leontios Kostrikis, a member of the Cypriot government's coronavirus advisory body, at a press briefing on Sunday. Five reported positive tests at UK military bases on the island are among the 214 confirmed cases.
Health officials also confirmed that a 68-year-old man died during the day, taking the overall number of victims of the outbreak in Cyprus to six.
In a written statement on the same day, Health Minister Constantinos Ioannou urged citizens to adhere to social isolation guidelines in order to curb the spread of the disease.
"The large increase in confirmed cases is of particular concern to me, because contact tracing confirms that the disease was transmitted within families and among friends by people who practically did not isolate themselves ... In order for our efforts to be successful, we must drastically limit our social activity. When examining the latest positive tests, we found that one carrier made contact with more than 15 people," the statement read.
As part of restrictive measures enacted to help slow the spread of COVID-19, Cypriot citizens must complete a printed form if they wish to leave their residence. Additionally, citizens can send a text message to a government service stating the reason for leaving their home.
