Austrian Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg has said that the country will go into a national lockdown to contain a fourth wave of coronavirus cases, reports AP.

Schallenberg said the lockdown will start on Monday and initially last for 10 days. Most stores will close, and cultural events will be cancelled.

Wolfgang Mueckstein, the country's health minister, later said that kindergartens and schools would remain open for those who needed to go there but all parents were asked to keep their children at home if possible.

Starting on February 1, the country will also make vaccinations mandatory, public broadcaster ORF reported.