Last weekend in Italy before tighter lockdown rules

Italians across the country made the most of a last weekend of relative freedom, before a strict new lockdown is imposed to curtail rising coronavirus infection numbers. In the capital Rome, people crowded the streets of the centre and strolled in parks, enjoying the fresh air before Monday's lockdown.

Large swathes of the country are being designated so-called red zones from next week, with the whole of Italy set to then close over the Easter weekend. The main shopping street, Via Del Corso, was heaving on Saturday afternoon.

Health Minister Roberto Speranza decided Friday that the regions Lazio, Lombardia, Veneto, Marche, Piemonte, Puglia, Emilia-Romagna, Friuli-Venezia-Giulia, and the province of Trento will become red zones, in addition to Campania and Molise, which were already red.

In 10 out of 20 regions, dining at restaurants, bars and cafes will be banned, non-essential shops must close and residents cannot leave homes except for work, food shopping, health care and exercise near their residences. Italy is tightening anti-COVID-19 restrictions as infection numbers steadily climb and many hospitals warn that they are running out of ICU beds for coronavirus patients.

Virus transmission, fueled by the variant discovered in Britain, has been racing through the population, particularly among youngsters, driving up new caseloads of COVID-19. Only a tiny fraction of Italy's population has received a COVID-19 vaccine. Logistics issues, including delivery delays from manufacturers, have been blamed for the slow rollout.

Image: AP