China imposes lock down of up to 13M people in Xi’an amid COVID-19 spike

China will impose an indefinite lockdown on as many as 13 million people in the city of Xi’an to curb the spread of COVID-19 in the region. 

The decision was announced on Wednesday and will take effect immediately.

Under the mitigation measures, one person from each house is allowed to leave every two days to purchase necessities. People must have an important reason to leave their homes otherwise, according to The Associated Press. 

Per the order, all transit in and out of the city will also be suspended except for special circumstances, the AP reported. 

The decision came after the city saw just over 50 new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases. The policy is one of the strictest the country has seen since the lockdown in 2020 in Wuhan, where the disease was first discovered, according to the wire service. 

China has taken a hardline approach to COVID-19 measures, imposing lockdowns and strict masking and testing requirements. 

As the country prepares for the Beijing Winter Olympic Games, set to begin on Feb. 4, measures have increased. 

Some groups, including the NHL and its player union, as well as the NHLPA, have announced that they would skip the winter games amid concerns of reported stringent COVID-19 protocols in China that forced people to quarantine for up to five weeks. 

The Biden administration also announced earlier this month that it would boycott the games for diplomatic reasons relating to China’s human rights abuses. Other countries, including the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and Lithuania, have also announced diplomatic boycotts of the games in Beijing.