17:45, 27 April 2020

Russian watchdog associates outbreak of coronavirus with a rally in Vladikavkaz

Rally in Vladikavkaz, April 20, 2020. Photo by Emma Marzoeva for the Caucasian Knot

In North Ossetia, the number of coronavirus cases increased by 148 over 24 hours and reached 549. According to the "Rospotrebnadzor" (Russian Federal Agency for Consumer Supervision), the growth of the number of coronavirus-infected people increased significantly because of a mass protest in Vladikavkaz and violation of the regime of self-isolation by residents of the republic.

According to the "Rospotrebnadzor", the growth of the number of coronavirus-infected people increased from 13% to 37%. "An increase in the number of coronavirus-infected people may occur due to the fact that residents of the republic do not follow recommendations of doctors, often violate the regime of self-isolation, and not everyone uses items of personal protection. Furthermore, the growth could be also affected by the attendance of mass events by our citizens, including participation in the rally, which took place on April 20," the "Interfax" quotes today the spokesperson of the "Rospotrebnadzor" Department for North Ossetia as saying.

On April 20, in Vladikavkaz, law enforcers dispersed from Freedom Square the opponents of the self-isolation regime. The protestors demanded the resignation of the government, the parliament, and the leader of North Ossetia. The protest action was dispersed, and the law enforcement bodies reported about the detention of 69 people. In total, about 2000 people took part in the spontaneous rally.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on April 27, 2020 at 01:07 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.