North Korea has ordered a five-day detention in its capital Pyongyang because of a “respiratory illness”, a South Korean specialist website reported.
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The move appears to be the first citywide action taken since the country declared victory over COVID-19 in August 2022.
Pyongyang residents have been ordered to stay at home from Wednesday to Sunday and must undergo multiple temperature checks every day, Seoul-based NK News reported, citing a government document.
This text does not mention COVID-19 but notes that the common cold is among the new diseases currently spreading in the capital.
Citing sources in Pyongyang, NK News said on Tuesday that residents in North Korea’s largest city appeared to be stocking up for a possible lockdown.
It is unclear whether other areas will be hit by similar lockdowns and state media have not announced any new measures.
The Korean peninsula is currently in the midst of a Siberian cold snap, which meteorologists are describing, with temperatures falling to -22C in Pyongyang.
China, a key trading partner and neighbor of North Korea, is facing a wave of infections after ending its drastic “zero Covid” policy.
North Korea has strictly closed its borders since the pandemic began, but allows some trade relations with China.
Pyongyang announced its first-ever Covid case in May 2022, before declaring victory over the disease three months later.
The World Health Organization has long cast doubt on Pyongyang’s Covid statistics and the country’s claims that the outbreak is under control.
North Korea has one of the worst healthcare systems in the world, with poorly equipped hospitals, few intensive care units and no treatment for COVID-19, according to experts.
According to expert sources, Pyongyang has not vaccinated its approximately 25 million inhabitants. Other information suggests the country would have received vaccines from China.