Azerbaijan bans wedding celebrations, public events after coronavirus death

Azerbaijan has banned wedding celebrations and other public events, the authorities said on Friday, a day after it recorded its first death from the coronavirus. The measures, which come into force on Saturday, also include shuttering museums, cinemas and theatres.

The authorities said the country's border with Georgia would be closed for 10 days and that all large cultural and sporting events would be postponed by a month. The former Soviet country said on Thursday that a woman who had been quarantined after returning from neighbouring Iran had died from the virus.

Schools, universities and kindergartens in the country have been closed since the beginning of March, and the authorities on Thursday extended the closure of the border with Iran for another two weeks. Azerbaijan has so far recorded 19 cases of the virus.