New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Sunday announced a three-day lockdown in the country's biggest city Auckland, after three new local COVID-19 cases were reported.
Ardern said the level 3 restrictions will require everyone to stay home except for essential shopping and essential work.
New Zealand has not had any local virus cases for months until the recent infections and was ranked the best performing in an index of almost 100 countries based on containment of the coronavirus.
By closing its international borders early the island nation virtually eradicated the virus in the early stage of the pandemic.


One dead, several injured in Iranian attack on Manama building
Trump says war could be over soon, as Iran rallies behind new leader
Iran names Mojtaba Khamenei as new supreme leader
Trump says he is 'nowhere near' deciding to send troops to Iran
Lebanon parliament extends its own mandate for two years as war intensifies
France to deploy almost dozen warships, mulls Hormuz mission, Macron says
32 civilians injured in Iranian drone attack in Bahrain's Sitra
Indonesia searches for five missing after landfill collapse kills four
