Seoul, Aug 6 (IANS): South Korea on Friday announced its decision to extend the toughest social-distancing rules in the capital area for two more weeks amid the continued resurgence of new Covid-19 cases and deaths.

The Level 4 social-distancing guideline, the highest in the country's four-tier quarantine rules, will be kept in place in Seoul, its surrounding Gyeonggi province and the western port city of Incheon for two more weeks until August 22, Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum announced.

The announcement came as the resurgence has showed no signs of abating.

On Friday, the country reported 1,704 new cases, raising the total infection tally to 207,406.

The daily caseload was down from 1,776 in the previous day, but it hovered above 1,000 for 31 straight days.

The daily average tally for the past week was 1,515.

The death toll currently stood at 2,113.

The recent resurgence was attributed to cluster infections in the greater Seoul area.

Of the new cases, 460 were Seoul residents. The number of people residing in Gyeonggi province and Incheon who tested positive were 451 and 101 respectively.

Under the Level 4 guideline, the gathering of as many as four people is allowed while any private gathering of three or more people is banned after 6 p.m. in the metropolitan area.

High-risk entertainment facilities, including night clubs, are prohibited from running business for the two weeks.

All the other multi-use facilities, such as restaurants and cafes, are allowed to open until 10 p.m.

The virus spread also raged in the non-metropolitan area.

The number of newly infected people in the non-capital region was 628, or 38.3 per cent of the total local transmission.

In the non-capital areas, the Level 3 social-distancing guideline will be maintained until August 22.

Under the Level 3 rules, any private gathering of five or more people is prohibited, and multi-used facilities can operate until 10 p.m.