Covid: Dutch to enter tight lockdown over Omicron wave

The Netherlands has announced a Christmas lockdown amid concerns over the Omicron coronavirus variant.

Non-essential shops, schools, bars, restaurants and other public venues will be closed until at least mid-January. Prime Minister Mark Rutte said the restrictions were "unavoidable".

It marks the strictest rules to have been announced over Omicron so far.

Countries across Europe have been tightening restrictions as the heavily mutated variant spreads.

The new rules in the Netherlands, which come into force on Sunday, were announced following a meeting between the government and health experts.

"The Netherlands is again shutting down. That is unavoidable because of the fifth wave that is coming at us with the Omicron variant," Mr Rutte told a news conference.

For weeks, curfews have been placed on hospitality and cultural venues in an effort to limit the spread of the variant.

The Dutch National Institute for Public Health has reported more than 2.9m coronavirus cases since the pandemic began, and over 20,000 deaths.