Curfew from 8 pm to 5 am * Lockdown continues in Jleeb, Mahboula, Farwaniya

By B Izzak

KUWAIT: The Cabinet has decided to move into the second phase of the five-phase process to return to normal life - reopening offices, malls, restaurants and cafes from June 30. The curfew will be eased from 8 pm to 5 am daily from Tuesday for three weeks. Malls will be allowed to operate from 10 am to 6 pm daily, while restaurants and cafes will be allowed to resume partial operations but dine-in is not permitted.
Government offices will reopen on Tuesday following over three months of closure at a maximum capacity of just 30 percent, while maintaining stringent health precautions, especially wearing masks and social distancing. In addition, moneychangers, construction work, retail shops and public parks will also be allowed to reopen.
The move to the second phase was scheduled to begin on June 21 but was delayed because of an unexpected rise in the number of cases, especially among citizens. But the Cabinet maintained a months-long lockdown of Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh and Mahboula and the closure of Farwaniya, apparently as health authorities have not recommended ending the lockdown. The three areas are home to over 700,000 expats.