Lebanon’s caretaker health minister, Hamad Hassan, has called for a two-week lockdown after a spike in Covid-19 cases since the Beirut port blast on August 4.

“We need a brave decision to close (the country) for two weeks,” Hamad Hassan told Voice of Lebanon radio station, declaring the country in a state of “general alert.”

On Sunday, Lebanon registered a record-breaking number of daily coronavirus cases last week, being the highest to date, at 439 new coronavirus cases and six fatalities in 24 hours.

Lebanon of just over 5 million people, the country death toll rose to 103 deaths recorded, pushing the total to over 8,881 coronavirus cases.

Around 180 people were killed, more than 6,000 wounded and over three lakh left homeless in Beirut blast on August 4.

Health Minister Hamad Hassan warned that the true number in Lebanon could increase far higher in the coming weeks and months.