Authorities in North Korea have ordered a five-day lockdown in the capital Pyongyang due to an increase in cases of an unspecified respiratory illness, Reuters reported, citing a North Korean government statement.

It did not mention anything about COVID-19, but said that residents of the capital were required to stay indoors until Sunday and that they should take their temperature several times a day, according to South Korean news portal NK News, which monitors news from the DPRK.

Yesterday, South Korean media reported that Pyongyang residents had stocked up on goods in anticipation of tougher measures. It is not clear whether new lockdowns have been imposed in other areas of the country.

North Korea acknowledged its first outbreak of the coronavirus last year, but by August it had declared victory over the virus.

Authorities have never confirmed how many people have contracted the disease because they do not have the means for mass testing. Instead, Pyongyang reported the daily number of "fever" patients, reaching 4.77 million out of a population of about 25 million. But since July, it has not reported such cases.

State media have continued to report on anti-pandemic measures to combat respiratory illnesses, including the flu, but have yet to report on the lockdown order.

North Korea's state news agency KCTA reported yesterday that campaigns urging "all working people to voluntarily observe anti-epidemic rules in their work and personal lives" were stepped up in the city of Kaesong, near the border with South Korea.

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