Spain's prime minister says a state of emergency will come into effect there on Saturday amid a steep rise in coronavirus deaths.
Pedro Sánchez warned that very hard weeks lay ahead but he vowed the government would do everything necessary to combat the crisis.
Earlier, the number of deaths in Spain increased by some 50% in a day to reach 120. Infections jumped to 4,200.
Mr Sanchez said the figure could top 10,000 next week.
The state of emergency in Spain allows his government to take wide-ranging measures for up to 15 days, including:
- limiting the movement of people or vehicles
- ordering evacuations
- prohibiting access to certain areas or places
- intervening in areas of industry and farming
Controls are being introduced at an increasing number of borders in Europe, in response to the coronavirus.
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