No one died of coronavirus yesterday and the Czech Republic is performing fairly well considering its low fatality rates, so I am calling on the media to stop its scaremongering campaign, said PM Andrej Babis on Sunday, reacting to news reports that tests have revealed a record number of 1541 new coronavirus infections across the country on Saturday.

On Sunday the Czech prime minister repeatedly called on everyone to observe the recommendations of health professionals. Recalling how the country s pandemic response has evolved, he said those who are attacking the government s measures had demanded the easing of restrictions and spoken out against face masks.

Daily infection numbers rose on Saturday, even though health authorities tend to administer fewer tests on public holidays than on regular work days. So far the highest case number recorded on a public holiday was 507, exceeded by over a thousand new infections on Saturday. The daily number of confirmed new COVID-19 cases surpassed one thousand for the first time on Tuesday and has shown a steady rise since then.

The number of active cases is currently over 13,700. For most patients the sickness is typically accompanied by mild symptoms only. Saturday saw a total of 297 people hospitalised with Covid-19 symptoms, described by health authorities as severe in 69 cases.

Andrej Babis emphasized that the Czech Republic s low mortality rate is considered a good achievement on a European level.

„I m asking the media to stop its scaremongering campaign! No one died of coronavirus infection yesterday [Saturday],” he said.

The premier even took to social media to drive home his message and call on Czechs to abide by the so-called „3R” rule comprised of the official recommendations on washing hands (ruce), wearing masks (rousky) and proper social distancing (rozestupy).

„That s what I m asking everyone to do. It s simple,” Andrej Babis tweeted.

According to data made available on the Czech foreign ministry s website, by Friday 11 countries – including Belgium, Denmark, Switzerland and Ireland – have decided to restrict the entry of Czech nationals, or to only allow them in on condition of a fresh negative coronavirus test, in view of the deteriorating epidemic situation. Some other countries, including Slovakia, have also indicated that they are mulling the introduction of new restriction or regulations regarding the entry of Czech nationals.