The French Government has declared Paris and the Bouches-du-Rhone area around Marseille on the Mediterranean coast as “red” zones with a high coronavirus infection risk.

The Government decree gives local authorities the power to limit the circulation of people and vehicles, to restrict the access to public transport and air travel, to limit the access to public buildings and to close some establishments where there is a high risk of infection.

The measure follows a sharp increase in COVID-19 infections over the past two weeks.