Parks in Beijing closed indefinitely as part of curbs to squash Omicron variant

Several roads and compounds were also sealed off, and residents of worst-hit areas were told to work from home

A health worker takes a sample from a man to test for the Covid-19 infection in Beijing

(AFP via Getty)

Several parks have been closed in Beijing as the Chinese city of 22 million grapples with its worse Covid outbreak since 2020.

As authorities try to tackle the spread of the Omicron variant, several roads and compounds were sealed off and residents of the worst-hit areas were told to work from home.

The Covid-19 outbreak in the city has been steadily worsening over the past few weeks. Beijing reported 50 new local infections on Monday, bringing the total number of reported cases since 22 April to 777.