{O/C} North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has ordered a rigorous lockdown following the country's first acknolwedged COVID outbreak.
{RVO}
The rogue state had been claiming to be COVID-free for more than two years into the ravaging pandemic.
While the size of the outbreak remains unknown, it could have serious implications given the country's poor healthcare system as well as its mostly unvaccinated population of 26 million.
Experts suggest the North may seek aid from its allies, which has been rare.
The state-run news agency said the samples collected Sunday from certain residents in Pyongyang confirmed they were infected with the omicron variant.
Leader Kim Jong-un, who ordered the complete lockdown to stem the virus' spread, said the lockdown was crucial to stabilising the situation and weeding out the clusters. He further claimed the country would work in concert to stamp out the outbreak.
An Associated Press photographer cited dozens of people still working in farms or walking on footpaths as an indication that the lockdown doesn't request people to stay at home, or that farm work is exempted.
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