Confined for five days.

The North Korean capital, Pyongyang, is plagued, Wednesday, January 25, with a “respiratory disease”, according to a specialized South Korean site.

The measure appears to be the first citywide taken since the country declared victory over Covid-19 in August 2022.

Residents of Pyongyang have been ordered to stay at home from Wednesday to Sunday and must submit to multiple temperature readings each day, Seoul-based NK News reported, citing a government document.

This text does not mention the Covid-19 but affirms that the cold is among the new diseases which are currently spreading in the capital.

Citing sources in Pyongyang, NK News said on Tuesday that residents of North Korea's largest city appeared to be stocking up for a possible lockdown.

Siberian cold snap

It is unclear whether other territories are affected by similar lockdowns and state media has not announced any new measures.

The Korean Peninsula is currently in the throes of what meteorologists describe as a Siberian cold snap, with temperatures in Pyongyang dropping as low as -22C. 

China, a key trading partner and neighbor of North Korea, has faced a wave of infections since ending its drastic "zero Covid" policy.

North Korea has strictly closed its borders since the start of the pandemic, but allows certain trade with China.

Pyongyang announced its very first case of Covid-19 in May 2022, before declaring victory over the disease three months later.

Ill-equipped hospitals

The World Health Organization (WHO) has long cast doubt on Pyongyang's Covid-19 statistics and the country's claims that the outbreak is under control.

North Korea has one of the worst health systems in the world, according to experts, with poorly equipped hospitals, few intensive care units and no treatment for Covid-19.

According to specialized sources, Pyongyang has not vaccinated its approximately 25 million inhabitants.

Other information indicates that the country would have received vaccines from China.

With AFP

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