CANBERRA: Authorities in an Australian outback town have imposed a curfew following a series of violent incidents, reported Xinhua.

Northern Territory (NT) Police Commissioner Michael Murphy on Monday announced a curfew has been instituted effective immediately for the town of Alice Springs, over 1,000 kilometres south of Darwin, for three nights.

Under the curfew, all individuals will not be permitted to enter the central business district (CBD) of Alice Springs between 10 pm and 6 am local time unless they have a valid reason to do so.

It comes after four off-duty police officers were allegedly assaulted by a group of people in Alice Springs in the early hours of Sunday morning.

A police officer was also run over in the town on Friday and an alleged stabbing occurred in the CBD in separate incidents.

“The seriousness of the events over a short period of time concerns me greatly,“ Murphy told reporters on Monday.

It marks the second time that Alice Springs has been subjected to a curfew in 2024.

All children under the age of 18 were banned from entering the CBD of Alice Springs between 6 pm and 6 am for three weeks between March and April amid civil unrest in the town of 25,000 people.

Murphy said on Monday that anyone entering the CBD without a lawful reason such as fleeing domestic violence, for work or caregiving reasons during the curfew will be engaged by police and asked to leave.

He said that failure to abide by the police’s request could result in an arrest or infringement notice being issued.

If harmful conduct continues, Murphy said the curfew could be extended. - Bernama, Xinhua