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Stavropol Krai extends restrictive measures

Vladimir Vladimirov, the governor of Stavropol Krai, has signed a decree extending anti-COVID-19 measures in the region until 14 June.

‘Three–four day’ wait times for ambulances in Karachay-Cherkessia

Ambulance wait times in the Ust-Dzheguta and Karachayevsky districts of Karachay-Cherkessia have reached 3-4 days, local news site Politika09 has reported.

According to them, local medical staff throughout Karachay-Cherkessia are failing to cope with an influx of new patients. 

They also said medical staff were suffering from acute shortages of personal protective equipment and ambulances. 

Politika09 reported that half of the personnel of a local outpatient clinic in the village of Kumysh, in Karachayevsky District had contracted COVID-19 and gone into self-isolation at home. The rest were continuing to work without protective equipment, they reported. 

Due to the only medical vehicle suffering regular breakdowns, doctors have reportedly been forced to visit patients on foot.

The regional government has reported that it has already purchased and sent necessary medical supplies and personal protective equipment worth ₽78 million ($1.1 million) for hospitals treating COVID-19.

According to the website of the regional government, a local firm donated an ambulance to the rural outpatient clinic in Kumysh after learning of the situation.

Georgia expects first tourists from Israel

Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia has announced that it ‘looks like’ the first tourists to be allowed into Georgia when borders begin to reopen will be from Israel.

In a meeting with tourist operators today, the PM identified Georgia’s Black Sea port city of Batumi and the western city of Kutaisi as the potential destinations. 

While gradually reopening the country’s economy, the Georgian government has sought to portray the country as a ‘COVID-free’ destination for potential tourists beyond their immediate neighbours, which used to be the origin of most tourists. 

Georgia will begin to resume international tourism from July. 

[Read more on OC Media: Georgia plans corona-safe ‘tourist zones’]

Record 12 new daily cases in South Ossetia

South Ossetian authorities have confirmed 12 new cases of COVID-19 today. There have been 57 total recorded cases to date. There have been 31 recoveries and zero deaths.

All of the recent cases, according to local medical authorities, are students who returned from Russia.

While the entry from Russia remains closed until 30 June, South Ossetian residents who are in Russia are allowed into South Ossetia if their entry is pre-approved by the anti-coronavirus task force. They are placed into a 14-day quarantine upon arrival. 

According to local officials, over 1,000 South Ossetians have already returned to the region since the beginning of the outbreak.

 For ease of reading, we choose not to use qualifiers such as ‘de facto’, ‘unrecognised’, or ‘partially recognised’ when discussing institutions or political positions within Abkhazia, Nagorno-Karabakh, and South Ossetia. This does not imply a position on their status.

Summary

Welcome to OC Media’s coronavirus live updates for Friday, 5 June. We will be bringing you the latest news on the COVID-19 pandemic from around the Caucasus.

The biggest developments from yesterday: 

According to the Georgian Foreign Ministry, in a phone conversation yesterday, Davit Zalkaliani, a top Georgian diplomat told his Armenian counterpart Zohrab Mnatsakanyan, that Georgia expresses solidarity with Armenia and is willing to help the Armenian government to tackle the challenges caused by the coronavirus outbreak. Following the news, a group of Georgians launched an online petition asking their government to assist Armenia by treating some of their patients infected with coronavirus in Georgia.

Despite a gradual decrease in the incidence rate of COVID-19 in Krasnodar Krai, the quarantine restrictions were extended until 21 June. Despite that, from 6 June, it will once again be permissible for the public to visit parks, beaches, outdoor summer terraces, outdoor cafes with separate entrances, among other public facilities. Kindergartens will also be open all over the region from 8 June for children from families ‘who have found themselves in a difficult life situation, including from single-parent families’.

Azerbaijan has announced that the cities of Baku, Sumgait, Ganja, and Lankaran, as well as the Absheron District, will be completely locked down over the coming weekend, following an increase in new infections. People in the affected areas would be allowed to leave their homes only in cases of absolute emergency — for urgent medical needs or if their lives are otherwise in danger. They will also be allowed to attend funerals of close relatives, with permission from the authorities. All shops and pharmacies would be closed in these cities over the weekend. 

Armenia has approved a new decision requiring citizens to wear a face mask at all times everywhere outside their homes, with the exception of children under six and for those who are exercising or cycling.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has announced that as of yesterday there were patients ill with COVID-19 that cannot be hospitalised due to a lack of hospital beds. 

On Monday, Abkhazia confirmed 7 new cases of COVID-19, hours after reporting that the three coronavirus patients were discharged from hospital. According to Abkhazian authorities all seven are students who had returned from Moscow on Tuesday. 

Read the latest stories:

• Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan and family test positive for COVID-19
• Armenian COVID-19 ‘fake news’ site was funded by US
• ‘A lost year’ — How the global pandemic has hit Azerbaijan’s economy
• COVID-19 outbreak in Daghestan ‘significantly understated’
• Armenia continues to reopen despite steady growth in new cases of COVID-19
• Chechens ‘beaten and detained’ by security forces for leaving home on Eid al-Fitr
• New law allows Georgian government to restrict rights without declaring state of emergency
• WHO recommendations ‘widely disregarded’ in South Ossetia’s Akhalgori
• Man disappears in Grozny after returning to be with family during pandemic
• Georgian Health Ministry cancels contract for ‘Dutch-made’ tests that were made in China
• Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Nagorno-Karabakh ‘vulnerable to COVID-19 pandemic’
• Georgia plans corona-safe ‘tourist zones’
• Critical shortages‘ of protective equipment reported in Daghestan’s hospitals
• Transgender woman sets herself on fire in Tbilisi
• Voice | The women on the frontline of the COVID-19 pandemic
• Police clash with anti-stay-at-home protesters in North Ossetia