Far-right protesters in Romania reject virus restrictions

By STEPHEN McGRATH
Associated Press

BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — More than 5,000 far-right protesters have gathered in Romania’s capital of Bucharest to reject new pandemic measures coming soon as authorities seek to combat an alarming surge of COVID-19 infections. Daily COVID-19 infections in the European Union nation of 19 million have skyrocketed from around 1,000 cases a day a month ago to 12,590 new cases on Saturday. That was Romania’s highest daily number of infections since the pandemic started. The rise is putting the country’s hospitals under serious pressure as intensive care units reach their capacity. The mostly mask-less marchers blocked traffic, honked horns and chanted “Freedom!” One placard read: “Green certificates = dictatorship.”