New Zealand is entering a heightened state of alert (level 4) for new restrictions following the COVID-19 case detected near Auckland, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced on Tuesday.
In a first In the next step, a national lockdown is introduced for three days and in Auckland for seven days.
It is not yet clear whether it is the delta variant or how the infection case, the first domestic case since February, can be related to border controls or isolation management.
New Zealand has had a strict policy that has largely eliminated the virus within the country, with a total of only 2,500 confirmed cases and 26 deaths.
