Walter Ricciardi, a top Italian physician and advisor to Health Minister Roberto Speranza, on Tuesday called for Naples and Milan to be put into lockdown.
The two cities have been hit especially hard by the recent upswing in COVID-19 cases in Italy.
"In Milan and Naples you can get COVID by walking into a bar or a restaurant or catching a bus," Ricciardi said.
"It is very easy to come into close contact with someone who is positive because the virus is circulating so much.
"A lockdown is needed in these areas, in others it isn't.
"There are areas of the country where transmission is exponential.
"The latest restrictions (imposed by central government) can be effective in the rest of the country, but they do not suffice to stop contagion in these areas".
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