North Korea admits to ‘first’ Covid-19 outbreak, goes into nationwide lockdown

North Korea officially confirmed what it said was its first outbreak of Covid-19 on May 12, 2022, following the discovery of a sub-variant of the highly transmissible Omicron virus in Pyongyang. State media KCNA reported it as “the biggest emergency incident in the country”. North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, ordered all cities to be locked down. Since early 2020, the country has closed its borders to almost all trade and tourists to protect itself from the pandemic. Until May 12, North Korea had never officially confirmed Covid-19 infections and there are no official records of any North Koreans being vaccinated, according to the World Health Organization.