ZAGREB, 24 November, 2021 - COVID-19 has been found in the feces and nose swabs of two lions in the Zagreb ZOO, which is the first confirmation of this virus in a species in a Croatian ZOO, the Agriculture Ministry said on Wednesday.

The two lions were tested after manifesting the clinical signs of the disease and due to their epidemiological link to a person (the lions' handler) with COVID-19. This was done as part of a programme monitoring SARS-CoV-2 infection in animals and determining their role in the epidemiology of COVID-19 in Croatia, a press release said.

The ministry said that for now, according to the World Organisation for Animal Health, there was no evidence that pets had a major role in transmitting COVID-19 to humans and the risk was considered very low.

Nonetheless, the ministry said, it is recommended that persons suspected of having or having COVID-19 avoid close contact with their pets and that animals of persons with COVID-19 be isolated.

ZAGREB, 24 November, 2021 - Croatia has registered 6,136 new coronavirus cases and 67 COVID-related deaths in the last 24 hours, the national COVID-19 response team reported on Wednesday.

Currently, there are 33,563 active cases and 2,551 of them are receiving hospital treatment, including 323 who are placed on ventilators. 24,738 people are self-isolating.

Since 25 February 2020, when the first case was confirmed in the country, 582,769 people have been registered as having contracted the novel virus, of whom 10,505 have died and 538,701 have recovered, including 3,047 in the last 24 hours.

A total of 3,382,082 people have been tested for the SARS-CoV-2 virus to date, including 15,177 in the last 24 hours.

As of Tuesday, 4,022,873 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered, with 52.78 per cent of the total population, or 63.01 per cent of the adult population, having been vaccinated. 2,141,962 people have received at least one dose and 1,906,220 have been fully vaccinated, which is 56.33 per cent of the adult population.

ZAGREB, 24 November, 2021 - Health Minister Vili Beroš said on Wednesday that in the past 24 hours Croatia had registered 6,136 new coronavirus cases, underscoring that while the epidemic was still raging there were people willing to build their political careers and score cheap political points on the deaths of their fellow citizens.

"Croatia has registered 6,136 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours. The percentage of those who tested positive is 40%, which shows that the epidemic is still raging, that the virus is spreading, that we, as a society, are not cautious enough, that we are not observing the epidemiological measures and that we have not achieved the vaccination rate which would in a way prevent the spreading of the virus," Beroš told Croatian Radio.

He added that a share of the newly-infected would, over the next two to three weeks, end up in a hospital.

"The death toll in Croatia can also be expected to go up," the health minister said, calling on Croatian citizens to get vaccinated.

He said the COVID certificate "does not mean freedom restriction, on the contrary, it increases freedom."

"The only alternative is a hard lockdown," Beroš said.

Asked about possible new, stricter measures, the minister said the national COVID-19 response team was analysing the situation on a daily basis and would act accordingly.

ZAGREB, 23 Nov 2021 - Justice and Public Administration Minister Ivan Malenica said on Tuesday that fines for those flouting the mandate to show their COVID-19 certificates in public law bodies would range between 30,000 and 50,000 kuna ( €4,000-6,700).  

We have envisaged pecuniary penalties for the responsible persons who fail to respect the relevant law. Fines are between HRK 30,000 and HRK 50,000, and we believe that they will prompt those institutions' heads and persons in charge to respect the decisions made by the national COVID-19 crisis management team, said the minister.

The draft amendments to the relevant legislation will be on the agenda of the government's meeting on Wednesday.

(€1 = HRK 7.5)

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ZAGREB, 23 Nov 2021 - Croatia has registered 4,926 new coronavirus cases and 62 COVID-related deaths in the past 24 hours, the national coronavirus response team reported on Tuesday.

Currently, there are 30,541 active COVID-19 cases in the country. Among them are 2,591 hospitalized people, including 317 patients placed on ventilators, and 22,304 people are self-isolating.

Since 25 February 2020, when the first case was confirmed in Croatia, 576,633 people have been registered as having contracted the novel virus, of whom 10,438 have died and 535,654 have recovered, including 4,048 in the past 24 hours.

To date, 3,366,965 people have been tested, including 12,862 in the past 24 hours.

As of 22 November, 4,000,957 doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered, with 52.55 percent of the total population, or 62.74 percent of the adult population, having been vaccinated.

Of that number, 2,132,477 people have received at least one dose, while 1,900,551 have been fully vaccinated, which is 56.16 percent of the adult population.

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November the 23rd, 2021 - Six Rebro Hospital (KBC Zagreb) hospital employees have been dismissed after refusing to regularly test for the presence of the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2.

To briefly bring you up to speed in case you haven't been following, several weeks ago a decision made by the Croatian Civil Protection Directorate was made that stated that all employees in the health and social care sector must have valid covid certificates, proving their vaccination status, that they've recovered from the virus in a specific time period, or that they have recently tested negative. The move was also intended for everyone who wanted to enter a health and/or social care facility unless it was a medical emergency.

Those who refuse to show their covid certificates and those who are not vaccinated and/or recovered who refuse to be tested regularly were warned when the rule came into force that they would likely be warned and then dismissed. That has occurred now on multiple occasions.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, six Rebro Hospital employees received extraordinary termination of their employment contracts because they persistently refused to show a valid digital covid certificate upon arrival at work and didn't want to be tested.

As RTL has learned, the documentation on the termination of the employment contract was sent to six employees of Zagreb's Rebro Hospital, and the information was confirmed by the deputy director of the hospital, Dr. Milivoj Novak.

The director of Rebro Hospital, Dr. Ante Corusic, previously emphasised that the institution has 6,156 employees, 12 of whom refused to be tested and didn't have a covid certificate to present when going to work. Two of them later changed their minds on the matter and started accepting regular coronavirus testing, one employee was fired, and the others, the director said at the time, would be fired in accordance with the law and the decisions of the Workers' Council.

However, the Healthcare Workers' Union claims that the Workers' Council did not comment on the dismissals of these six Rebro Hospital employees because none of them even asked for them to step in or make a comment.

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ZAGREB, 22 November, 2021 - The head of Zagreb's Dubrava Hospital, Ivica Lukšić, said on Monday that on Wednesday, November 24, non-essential procedures would no longer be performed at the hospital due to the need to increase capacity for COVID-19 patients, and care would be provided only for emergency cases and cancer patients.

Speaking in an interview with Croatian Television, Lukšić said that in coordination with other Zagreb hospitals, the KB Dubrava was preparing and reorganising in order to provide treatment for those most in need, COVID-19 patients.

"We believe that the new regime will not last long and that we will manage to weather the current fourth wave of the epidemic and gradually return to the usual regime," he said, recalling that in addition to 33 beds for COVID-19 patients in need of intensive care, which constitutes three intensive care units, an additional, fourth unit with nine beds had been set up.

In a comment on divisions in society regarding the attitude to the pandemic, Lukšić said that they were sad and discouraging.

"We need solidarity to overcome this. All public figures must be aware of their responsibility for what they say and I deeply believe that a large number of our citizens are confused by information they hear daily in the media and on social networks, which causes additional insecurity and divisions."

ZAGREB, 22 Nov 2021 - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Monday commented on Saturday's protest against COVID certificates and asked what sort of personal freedom it was that "brings death and takes numerous lives that shouldn't have been lost?"

"Those who are insisting on their own freedom and avoiding COVID certificates and testing evidently do not think that there are people who pay a high price for this epidemic," Jandroković said in an interview with Croatian Radio.

He said that the key issue was not COVID certificates but the fact that more than 10,000 people had died of COVID-19, including a record 73 in the current fourth wave today.

"I don't know what sort of personal freedom it is that brings death and takes numerous lives that shouldn't have been lost," he said.

He also wondered what sort of freedom excluded doctors and nurses who for the past 21 months have been working hard to save human lives and called for showing them some trust as they work in impossible conditions.

With reference to Saturday's protest, he said that it was heterogenous and that there were among the protesters "various false prophets and political profiteers".

Asked whether mandatory vaccination was being considered, Jandroković said that Croatia had adopted measures to curb the spread of coronavirus and that at the moment he could not say whether new ones would be introduced.

It all depends on how the pandemic will develop, he added.

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ZAGREB, 22 Nov 2021 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said on Monday that the protest against the COVID-19 certificate mandate on Saturday was predominantly a political protest, described as shameful political profiteering from people's fears, COVID-19 deaths, and COVID-19 patients fighting for their lives.

He stressed that he also condemned attacks on reporters during the protest.

"I most strongly condemn the attack on your fellow reporter (Goran) Latković, it is a cowardly and brazen act and it is not clear to me why anyone would bring into question the right of reporters and media to report about a public event. I regret it happened and believe police will identify the perpetrators," Plenković told reporters during a visit to Slovenia.

Noting that it was not problematic to protest and express one's view or disagree with the measures the government was undertaking, Plenković said that the protest was nonetheless of a political nature.

"The gentlemen from the Bridge, the Homeland Movement, the remnants of the Human Shield, and the exhibitionist from the European Parliament whom no one knows there, (Croatian independent MEP Mislav) Kolakušić, have jumped on the bandwagon. (President Zoran) Milanović supported them before and afterward. He is the only president of an EU member country who openly opposes COVID-19 certificates and measures introduced by the government to protect public health," said Plenković.

As for protesters shouting that there was no coronavirus and that they were being denied their freedoms, Plenković said profiteering from people's fears was shameful and called on the protesters to visit an intensive care unit in a Croatian hospital where COVID-19 patients are being treated.

He repeated that vaccination is not mandatory and that testing is being offered as a non-invasive alternative.

"What is invasive about swabbing that lasts half a second? The sole purpose of the protest was to profit from COVID-19 deaths. There are people who try to profit from people's fears while themselves being afraid of a simple test," said Plenković.

Constitution protects Milanović but not his secretary and chief of staff

In a comment on decisions by individual local officials to defy restrictions imposed by the national COVID-19 response team, the PM said that in normal circumstances, everyone fights against disease but that there are know-it-alls who say that there is no coronavirus in Primošten, Sinj, and Čabar, a reference to the three towns' mayors.

"We are dealing here with petty politics and politicians who are sabotaging our measures designed to protect citizens," he added.

As for President Milanović's statements about COVID-19 certificates, Plenković said that the president was protected by the constitution but that his secretary and chief of staff were not.

In a comment on an announcement by the opposition Bridge party that it would organize a referendum on COVID-19 certificates, he said Bridge officials were "the biggest parasites" trying to profit from the current situation, adding that they should be asked if they had got vaccinated as "there are many who are making noise and have protected themselves."

As for a ruling by the European Court of Human Rights pointing to omissions by Croatian police in a case involving the death of a six-year-old Afghan migrant child, Plenković said that he regretted the tragic event and that he respected the ruling.

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ZAGREB, 22 Nov 2021 - President Zoran Milanović said on Monday his office would summon the Austrian ambassador to convey his concern over "fundamental human freedoms" in that country after the government in Vienna recently summoned the Croatian ambassador over Milanović's comments on COVID rules in Austria.

The Croatian diplomat was summoned last week after Milanović recently commented on the Austrian government's anti-epidemic measures, noting that they were reminiscent of Fascism.

Asked by the press today about Austria's imposing an all-out lockdown and its plan to introduce mandatory vaccination against COVID-19 as of February 2022, Milanović called it a disaster.

"I think the Swedes are much cleverer than they are than their authorities. Considering that our diplomats are being summoned, today the Austrian ambassador will be summoned so that we can convey our deep concern for the fundamental human freedoms in Austria," Milanović said.

"Our ambassadors are constantly summoned over some nonsense, so we will summon theirs," he said.

On 17 November, Croatia's Ambassador to Austria, Danijel Glunčić, was called to the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs over Milanović's statement about the Austrian coronavirus policy. "I can confirm that I was called to the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs," Glunčić told Hina last week, declining to reveal details of the discussion.

According to a statement from the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Glunčić was called over "highly unusual statements by the Croatian president," which were "sharply rejected".

"Comparing the measures against the coronavirus pandemic to fascism is unacceptable. It is our responsibility to protect the citizens of Austria and we are acting accordingly," the Austrian ministry said, as quoted by APA news agency.

Austrian media quoted the Croatian president as saying after an audience with Pope Francis in the Vatican on Monday that the Austrian decision to impose a lockdown on unvaccinated people was "reminiscent of the 1930s" and called it foolish.

Commenting on the latest developments, Milanović said today that the governments of some Western European countries kept criticizing Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and the Poles, while some of them behave as if they are "sacred cows that do everything perfectly".

"No, it's stupid. It is not scientific and you terrorize people. Given that this is the European Union and I am a European statesman, I have a problem with that," Milanović said.

He went on to say that if the Dutch can comment on Bosnia and Herzegovina every week, he can comment on the situation in Rotterdam.

"Your people have revolted (against COVID measures). And they are not immigrants but blonde and blue-eyed Dutchmen. Use your head, gentlemen," Milanović said, referring to violent riots in that Dutch city over the weekend.

Commenting on increasingly stringent restrictions being imposed to stop the spread of coronavirus, Milanović accused "dull-witted" Eurocrats in Brussels of such policy, adding that no such restrictions are in place in the Scandinavian countries.

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