NAIROBI (Reuters) - Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta extended a nightly curfew on Monday for 30 days to curb the spread of COVID-19 and banned alcohol sales in restaurants but stopped short of locking down the country again despite a surge in cases.

The curfew had been due to be lifted on Aug. 6 or 7.

Kenya has so far reported 17,975 cases of infection with the new coronavirus and 285 deaths from the related disease COVID-19. The health ministry said on Sunday it had reported 960 more cases, the biggest daily jump since the first case was confirmed in March.

“The harsh reality my friends is that we are at war. At war with an invisible enemy who is relentless,” Kenyatta said in a televised address.

Kenyatta said the government had also shortened restaurant operating times by an hour, and ordered bars to stay closed indefinitely, but stopped short of reimposing a full lockdown.

Read the full article here.