韩国首都圈疫情卷土重来！教会引爆第二轮大流行

近日，韩国疫情急速反弹，据韩国防疫部门17日通报称，当地时间16日0时至17日0时，韩国新增197例新冠肺炎确诊病例，其中本土病例188例，境外输入9例，累计确诊15515例。

这已是韩国连续四天单日新增过百。快速蔓延的疫情让不少民众陷入恐慌，连政府也对当前形势也感到忧虑。韩国中央灾难安全对策本部第一总协调官、卫生部副部长金刚立在17日发布会上称，当前疫情比2月份的第一次暴发“更严重”。

这一周的新增病例主要集中在包括首尔、仁川、京畿道在内的首都圈地区，与“爱第一”教会等暴发的群聚性感染有关。

据悉，“爱第一”教会负责牧师全光焄已确诊新冠肺炎，与之相关确诊患者累计达319人，成为继新天地大邱教会（5214人）之后的第二大规模集体感染事件。

South Korea reported 197 new infections on Monday, taking its total to 15,515, its fourth consecutive day of triple-digit increases after several weeks with numbers generally in the 30s and 40s.

Thousands of members of a Protestant church linked to a coronavirus cluster in Seoul have been asked to quarantine, South Korean authorities said Monday, as they accused the group's firebrand conservative leader – who has reportedly tested positive – of obstruction.

Over the weekend the capital and neighboring Gyeonggi province – between them home to nearly half the population – banned all religious gatherings and urged residents to avoid unnecessary travel after a burst of new cases sparked fears of a major second wave.

作为“爱第一”教会的负责人，全光焄就曾于2月不顾政府劝阻，强行在光化门组织非法集会，并宣称“户外感染不了病毒”，尽管他随后被逮捕，但最终获得保释。

此后数月间，他始终无视韩国疫情形势的严峻性，多次组织集会。8月15日，他更公然违背政府禁令，召集上万人走上街头，参加光复节集会，使得教会成为此次感染重灾区。

在活动现场，大家摩肩接踵，不仅无法保持社交距离，还有不少人在游行中途摘下口罩，分享食物，这当中不乏需要接受检测的人员。在警方劝说参与者解散时，他们与警方发生了激烈冲突。

目前，韩国中央事故处置本部和首尔市已对全光焄发起控告。韩国政府称，全光焄违反防疫规定、不配合检疫，严重威胁民众安全。

更让人担忧的是，相比较早期大邱的大规模感染，此次感染的群体中60岁以上人群的比重增大，加上参与人员众多，教会提供虚假名单，难以追踪传播路径，为尽早切断传染源增加难度。

实际上，因教会活动引发的感染事件还不止于此，除“爱第一”外，还有多个教会先后出现群聚感染病例，确诊人数还将进一步增加。

Despite repeated warnings from the government, over 10,000 members of the church, one of which was led by conservative pastor Jun Kwang-hoon and other members of Sarang Jeil Church in Seoul, attended a mass Liberation Day rally in central Seoul on Saturday.

"Of the 4,000 churchgoers whom authorities have identified as of midnight, 3,400 have been placed in quarantine and 2,000 have been screened. Of the total, 312 have tested positive, which translates to a high positive rate of 16.1 percent and calls for swift testing and quarantine," the Vice Health Minister Kim Gang-lip said in a regular press briefing.

Around one in six of the church members tested so far had been positive, "requiring rapid testing and isolation," said vice health minister Kim Gang-lip.

But a list of members provided by the church was "inaccurate", he said, making the testing and isolation procedure "very difficult".

针对当前严峻的疫情形势，韩国总统文在寅呼吁动员国家力量，在当地增加医疗资源，遏制感染蔓延，对于违反防疫守则和阻碍防疫工作的非法行为，必须严惩不贷。

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