Moroccan prisons
service said that more than 300 cases of novel coronavirus have been detected
at three Moroccan prisons after a campaign of testing of inmates and guards in
the country’s 73 jails.
Following 1,700 tests across the country, it said 303 infections were
recorded at a jail in the southern town of Ouarzazate, 62 of them prison
employees. Ten others were found in the central city of Marrakesh and in
Ksar Kebir in the north.
Further tests were being carried to confirm five possible cases at
Tangiers prison, AFP reported.
Morocco has confirmed 4,252 cases of coronavirus, including 165 deaths
from COVID-19 and 778 recoveries. The kingdom has imposed strict social
distancing measures and made it compulsory to wear masks outside.
The prison service has said the virus in Morocco’s jails, which hold
nearly 80,000 inmates, are under control thanks to “preventive measures” such
as quarantines and remotely held court hearings.
In early April, more than 5,650 detainees were released under royal
pardons in an effort to reduce the risk of the virus spreading in the country’s
notoriously overcrowded penitentiaries. However, almost 5,500 new inmates
were registered between March 15 and April 21, according to prison service
figures.
Morocco’s public health state of emergency is to remain in place until
at least May 20. – Africa
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