Sierra Leone is banning Christmas and New Year’s celebrations across the country this year due to the widespread Ebola outbreak.

Announced by Palo Conteh, head of Sierra Leone’s government response to Ebola, the move is a part of a greater effort to keep people indoors and out of contact with others who could potentially spread the virus. Soldiers are expected to monitor the streets to maintain order.

Sierra Leone is the hardest-hit country, with more than 8,000 Ebola cases and nearly 1,900 deaths as of Dec. 10, according to the World Health Organization. It has now surpassed Liberia as the country with the most reported Ebola cases. More than 6,500 people have died and 18,100 have been infected across the West African countries of Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea since the outbreak resurfaced last year.

“We will ensure that everybody remains at home to reflect on Ebola,” Conteh said, according to Agence France-Presse. “Military personnel will be on the streets at Christmas and the New Year to stop any street celebrations.”

Although the majority of people living in Sierra Leone are Muslim, 10% of the population is Christian, according to the Central Intelligence Agency’s World Factbook.

Amid the Ebola crisis, the country has already shut down bars and clubs, and prohibits public gatherings, but there is currently no ban on going outdoors or to the workplace.

Meanwhile, Liberia’s president recently outlined a goal for the country to be Ebola-free by Christmas, but experts say the target is too ambitious, and out of reach.

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