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Austria reintroduces border controls with Switzerland

An empty Vienna airport
Vienna airport is feeling the effects of numerous flight cancellations. Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.

Austria has reintroduced border controls with Switzerland and Liechtenstein, while banning flights from Switzerland, Spain and France, in an effort to contain the spread of coronavirus.  

The Austrian government announced the move on Friday, saying it will take effect from the beginning of next week. Austria had previously introduced similar border measures with another neighbouring country, Italy.

Swiss travelers are already being rejected by the United States, Israel, Saudi Arabia and Serbia on a temporary basis. The number of confirmed coronavirus cases has risen to more than a thousand in Switzerland with seven confirmed deaths by Friday afternoon.

Austria’s tightened border is part of a package of measures introduced by the government, including a quarantine of two regions, the closure of bars, restaurants, cafés and non-essential shops plus a recommendation that all people should work from home if possible.

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