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France is closing schools across the country for three weeks due to the corona pandemic.
President Emmanuel Macron announced this in a televised address on Wednesday evening.
Nationwide distance classes will be held for one week, followed by two weeks of spring break.
It is the first time in the current school year that schools in France are closed due to Corona.
In addition, restrictions on citizens and businesses are being extended across the country.
People are not allowed to move further than ten kilometers from their place of residence without a valid reason.
In addition, there are nightly exit restrictions nationwide.
These rules previously applied in 19 departments in the greater Paris area and other regions, but are now being extended to the entire country.
The changes come into force on Saturday.
"We'll lose control if we don't do anything now," Macron said in a televised address.
In France it had been speculated for some time that Macron would turn to his compatriots again because of the tense situation.
Most recently, Prime Minister Jean Castex had announced further restrictions on several occasions.
Schools in France have so far only been closed during the first strict lockdown last spring.
After that, Macron insisted on keeping this open as long as possible.
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The corona situation in France has worsened again significantly.
Hospitals in the greater Paris area in particular raised the alarm because the intensive care units were overcrowded.
The number of new corona infections per 100,000 inhabitants within a week was recently a good 375 nationwide. Last week, Germany classified France as a high-incidence area and tightened the entry regulations.
In the country with around 67 million inhabitants, more than 95,000 people have died so far.