This blog is closing now but thanks very much for reading. We’ll be back in a few hours with more rolling coverage of the pandemic from all around the world.
In the meantime you can catch up with all our coverage of the pandemic here.
The latest Covid situation in Australia:
Brazil registered 1,556 Covid-19 deaths on Wednesday and 57,736 additional cases, according to data released by the country’s health ministry.
The South American country has now registered a total of 537,394 coronavirus deaths and 19,209,729 total confirmed cases, Reuters reports.
Health officials in the Democratic Republic of Congo said they had run out of AstraZeneca vaccines, but also reported the numbers of new infections and deaths from Covid-19 were beginning to drop.
Health minister Jean-Jacques Mbungani told AFP there were no more doses of the AstraZeneca jab in the country since three shipments received on March 2 reached their expiration dates in June and on July 11. “We haven’t yet reached the peak, but we are seeing a drop in the number of cases and also a drop in fatalities linked to Covid-19, which is encouraging,” the minister added.
The US administered 335,487,779 doses of Covid-19 vaccines in the country as of Wednesday morning and distributed 388,295,385 doses, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Wednesday.
Those figures are up from the 334,942,236 vaccine doses the CDC said had gone into arms by July 13, out of 387,241,530 doses delivered.
The agency said 184,835,149 people had received at least one dose, while 160,126,516 people are fully vaccinated as of Wednesday.
A summary of today's developments
- France reported 8,875 new infections as police clashed with protestors in Paris amidst outcry over President Emmanuel Macron’s latest round of Covid measures. Macron’s plan would require a Covid-19 vaccine certificate or negative PCR test to gain entry to bars, restaurants and cinemas from next month.
- Ibiza, Mallorca and Menorca will be added to Scotland’s amber travel list, the Scottish Government said. The change for those returning to England and Scotland from Spain’s Balearic Islands will take place at 4am of Monday, PA reports. Bulgaria and Hong Kong will be added to the green list - meaning there is no requirement to isolate on return for any travellers regardless of the vaccination status.
- Spain’s Constitutional Court has ruled that strict home confinement included in a national state of emergency to curb the first wave of Covid-19 infections last year was unconstitutional.
- Indonesia recorded its biggest daily increase in coronavirus infections with 54,517 cases on Wednesday, taking the total tally to just over 2.67m cases.
- The Philippines has announced it will ban travellers coming from Indonesia to prevent the spread of the Delta variant.
- Malta has amended its travel advice to allow in British travellers with any AstraZeneca vaccine after reports of people being turned away if their dose had been manufactured in India.
- In Japan, seven staff tested positive for Covid at a hotel in south-west Tokyo where a 31-strong Brazilian Olympic delegation, which includes judo athletes, are currently staying.
- South Korea on Wednesday tightened social distancing curbs across most of the country to try to combat its worst-ever outbreak of coronavirus after new cases on Tuesday soared past previous daily peaks to 1,615.
- Russia has reported 786 coronavirus-related deaths on Wednesday, which is again the most confirmed in a single day since the beginning of the pandemic.
- The Netherlands has recorded a 500% rise in Covid cases, following moves to fully reopen the economy including opening nightclubs. It has been seen as a warning as to how case numbers might take off in England when restrictions are dropped next week.
- The UK will not be added to the EU travel green list this week. EU diplomats agreed unanimously to add Ukraine, and remove Thailand and Rwanda.
- Australia extended a lockdown in Sydney by at least 14 days, after three weeks of initial restrictions failed to stamp out the biggest outbreak of COVID-19 this year in the country’s largest city.
- Coronavirus cases in Iran have soared above 23,000 for the first time since late April as the country battles its fifth wave of the pandemic.
- The US donated 500,000 doses the Pfizer Covid vaccine to Costa Rica on Wednesday as part of the Biden administration’s programme of coronavirus diplomacy.
Mexico’s health ministry on Wednesday reported 12,116 new confirmed cases of Covid-19 and 230 more fatalities, bringing its total figures to 2,616,827 infections and 235,507 deaths, Reuters reports.
The government has said the real number of cases is likely significantly higher, and separate data published recently suggested the actual death toll could be 60% higher than the official count.
Passengers on buses, trams and trains in England must deal with a patchwork of different rules on face coverings next week after several mayors said masks would still be required on public transport.
The government is dropping the legal requirement to wear a face covering on public transport in England from Monday, as ministers seek to move to a system of “personal responsibility”.
However, on Wednesday, the mayors of multiple English regions said they were concerned that dropping the requirement would make buses and trains “no-go” areas for vulnerable passengers and that they should still be worn.
Sadiq Khan, the London mayor, said masks would remain compulsory on public transport in the capital, while Andy Burnham, the Greater Manchester mayor, said they would also be required on the region’s Metrolink tram service.
Spain’s Constitutional Court has ruled that strict home confinement included in a national state of emergency to curb the first wave of Covid-19 infections last year was unconstitutional.
The Constitutional Court said it had annulled by a simple majority some articles of the state of emergency decree related to free movement of citizens. The complete ruling will be released in a few days. By voiding the emergency decree, the ruling opens the door to the cancellation of fines for breaching lockdown restrictions imposed during the period, Reuters reports. The court’s decision comes in response to a petition filed by far-right party Vox, which argued the measures were overly harsh and constituted a suspension rather than a limitation of civil liberties.
Vaccinated holidaymakers have a “false sense of security” over the safety of international travel during the pandemic, a member of the the UK government’s vaccine taskforce told MPs.
Professor Adam Finn, member of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), said fully-vaccinated passengers believe they do not pose a risk to others when travelling.
But he told a meeting of the Home Affairs Select Committee that even people with both doses of the jab can bring in vaccine-resistant variants from other countries.
He said: “I think there are risks with the traffic light system as well as with categorising vaccinated people as somehow safe.
People get the false sense of security. They’re coming from a green country and they think there’s no risk or they’re vaccinated and they think that they don’t pose a risk to anyone else.
“So these categories are going to be necessary to make it more workable, we are going to have to work really hard to avoid giving people wrong impressions about the risks that they pose when they travel.”
The Spanish region of Catalonia, which has the highest coronavirus incidence rate in the country, said it would impose a night curfew in 158 cities and towns as infections have soared especially among young people.
The curfew, which needs to be authorised by a court, would take place between 1 a.m. and 6 a.m. for a seven-day period in areas with over 5,000 inhabitants with a high incidence rate, including tourism hotspots Barcelona, Sitges, Salou and Lloret de Mar.
Spain, which lifted a nationwide curfew in early May, reported on Wednesday an increase of 26,390 cases compared to Tuesday, Reuters reports.
The nationwide 14-day infection rate reached nearly 470 cases per 100,000 people on Wednesday, up from 437 cases a day earlier.
Updated
Government advice on how businesses should keep customers and staff safe after Covid-19 restrictions are lifted in England on 19 July has been branded a “recipe for chaos”, as ministers confirmed that mask-wearing would not be a legal requirement.
The new guidelines, issued on Wednesday, place the onus on shops, offices and events and hospitality venues to decide which safety measures to implement.
Guidance for businesses lays out six priorities: stringent cleaning regimes, turning away people with symptoms, providing adequate ventilation, enabling check-in via the NHS app, good training for staff and performing risk assessments.
Protests in Cuba will increase the risk of Covid-19 transmission because of an already high level of cases and the more contagious Delta variant, health officials said.
The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) urged Cubans and tourists visiting the Caribbean nation to avoid crowds, wear masks and frequently wash hands. “The gathering of individuals for protests... increases the risk of transmission, in particular in cases such as Cuba where you have active transmission in many areas over the last week and 34,244 new cases reported,” said Dr. Ciro Ugarte, PAHO’s director of health emergencies, Reuters reports.
Ibiza, Mallorca and Menorca will be added to Scotland’s amber travel list, the Scottish Government has said.
The change for those returning to England and Scotland from Spain’s Balearic Islands will take place at 4am of Monday, potentially sparking a rush for holidaymakers to return to avoid the need to quarantine, PA reports.
Meanwhile, Bulgaria and Hong Kong will be added to the green list - meaning there is no requirement to isolate on return for any travellers regardless of the vaccination status.
Croatia and Taiwan will be added to the “green watchlist”, meaning there is no need for anyone to quarantine but they are at risk of going amber.
The British Virgin Islands will also go amber, while Cuba, Indonesia, Myanmar and Sierra Leone will be added to the red list requiring 10 days of isolation in a quarantine hotel.
Thanks for joining me on the Guardian’s global coronavirus today. I’m leaving you in the excellent hands of Nadeem Badshah. Ta ra!
Surge in cases in France as police clash with protestors on Bastille Day
France reported 8,875 new infections as police clashed with protestors in Paris amidst outcry over President Emmanuel Macron’s latest round of Covid measures.
Macron’s plan would require a Covid-19 vaccine certificate or negative PCR test to gain entry to bars, restaurants and cinemas from next month.
The show of discontent took place on Bastille Day, a day of national celebration held annually to mark the 1789 storming of the medieval fortress in Paris. Protests were also held in other French cities including Nantes, Marseille and Montpellier.
Reuters Reports:
Macron this week announced sweeping measures to fight a rapid surge in new coronavirus infections, including the mandatory vaccination of health workers and new health pass rules for the wider public.In doing so, he went further than most other European nations have done as the highly contagious Delta variant fans a new wave of cases, and other governments are watching carefully to see how the French public responds. (Graphic on global cases)
The police fired tear gas on several occasions as pockets of protesters overturned garbage cans and set a mechanical digger alight. Some protesters away from the skirmishes wore badges saying “No to the health pass”.Some critics of Macron’s plan – which will require shopping malls, cafes, bars and restaurants to check the health passes of all patrons from August – accuse the president of trampling on freedoms and discriminating against those who do not want the COVID shot.
“It’s totally arbitrary and wholly undemocratic,” said one protester who identified himself as Jean-Louis.
Macron says the vaccine is the best way to put France back on the path to normalcy and that he is encouraging as many people as possible to get inoculated.
Updated
Iraq’s health ministry reported 9,635 new coronavirus cases Wednesday, the highest figure this month, days after a medical facility fire killed dozens and re-ignited anger over the country’s failing health system.
Nearly 1.5 million Covid-19 cases have been reported in Iraq since the start of the pandemic, including more than 17,000 deaths, overwhelming hospitals crippled by decades of conflict and corruption.
The newly spiking caseload comes two days after a flames ripped through a Covid quarantine facility in the southern city of Nasiriya on Monday, killing at least 60 people.
Exploding oxygen canisters sparked a fire that also injured dozens, according to the health ministry.
It was the second fire in Iraq to blamed on poorly stored oxygen in three months after a fire at a Baghdad Covid hospital killed 82 people in April.
International human rights organisation Amnesty International has accused Greece’s police force of using the pandemic as an excuse to impose blanket bans on protests and apply excessive force to crush peaceful demonstrations, reports Reuters.
Street protests are common in Greece, and several have taken place in recent months on issues ranging from a new labour law to Israeli attacks on Gaza, or a hunger strike by a far-left militant political gunman.
Amnesty said Greek police had used “arbitrary arrests, blanket bans, unjustified fines and unlawful use of force” from November 2020 through March.
“Governments do not have carte blanche to restrict human rights, even during a pandemic,” the London-based rights group said in a report published on Wednesday.
A police spokesperson declined to comment on the report and said a response would be issued in due course.
According to The World Health Organization (WHO) deaths climbed globally last week after nine straight weeks of decline.
WHO recorded more than 55,000 deaths, a 3% increase from the week before. Cases rose last week by 10% to nearly 3 million.
In its weekly report, the U.N. health agency said the highest numbers of new cases were in Brazil, India, Indonesia and Britain. WHO said that the more-contagious delta variant has now been identified in 111 countries since first being detected in India and that the mutant version is expected to become globally dominant in the coming months.
Today so far …
- Indonesia recorded its biggest daily increase in coronavirus infections with 54,517 cases on Wednesday, taking the total tally to just over 2.67m cases.
- The Philippines has announced it will ban travellers coming from Indonesia to prevent the spread of the Delta variant.
- Malta has amended its travel advice to allow in British travellers with any AstraZeneca vaccine after reports of people being turned away if their dose had been manufactured in India.
- In Japan, seven staff tested positive for Covid at a hotel in south-west Tokyo where a 31-strong Brazilian Olympic delegation, which includes judo athletes, are currently staying.
- South Korea on Wednesday tightened social distancing curbs across most of the country to try to combat its worst-ever outbreak of coronavirus after new cases on Tuesday soared past previous daily peaks to 1,615.
- Russia has reported 786 coronavirus-related deaths on Wednesday, which is again the most confirmed in a single day since the beginning of the pandemic.
- The Netherlands has recorded a 500% rise in Covid cases, following moves to fully reopen the economy including opening nightclubs. It has been seen as a warning as to how case numbers might take off in England when restrictions are dropped next week.
- The UK will not be added to the EU travel green list this week. EU diplomats agreed unanimously to add Ukraine, and remove Thailand and Rwanda.
- Australia extended a lockdown in Sydney by at least 14 days, after three weeks of initial restrictions failed to stamp out the biggest outbreak of COVID-19 this year in the country’s largest city.
- Coronavirus cases in Iran have soared above 23,000 for the first time since late April as the country battles its fifth wave of the pandemic.
- The United States donated 500,000 doses the Pfizer Covid vaccine to Costa Rica on Wednesday as part of the Biden administration’s programme of coronavirus diplomacy.
Updated
China crosses 1.4bn doses milestone
China has achieved another symbolic milestone in its massive vaccination rollout: administering 1.4bn doses - as many vaccinations as its population, according to the National Health Commission.
Globally, at least 3.51 billion vaccine doses have been administered as of today, according to Oxford University’s Our World in Data website.
The data from China, however, does not mean everyone in the world’s most populous country has been fully vaccinated. Beijing does not regularly update the nationwide number of its fully vaccinated population, but state media said last month that the nationwide rate had exceeded 40%.
Zeng Yixin, deputy director of the National Health Commission, pledged last month to inoculate at least 70% of the “target groups” by the year-end.
Meanwhile, several Chinese cities will begin inoculating their teenage population this month. Guangxi region in Southern China, for example, will start inoculating those aged between 15 and 17 this month, and those between 12 and 14 next month, according to state-owned China News Agency.
In Suzhou of Eastern Anhui province, the authorities this month wrote an open letter to residents in the city to announce their plans to vaccinate those between 12 and 17 years old.
Updated
The Covid-19 pandemic saw a record number of Americans die of drug overdoses in 2020, as lockdowns and social distancing made administering treatment difficult.
U.S. deaths from drug overdoses leapt nearly 30% to more than 93,000 in 2020 – the highest annual figure ever recorded.
Reuters reports:
While overdose deaths were already increasing in the months preceding the COVID-19 outbreak, the latest data show a stark acceleration during the pandemic.Social distancing reduced access to programs that offer needle exchange, opioid substitution therapy or safe injection sites where observers could deploy the overdose antidote Narcan, leaving many addicts to die alone.
Moreover, during stay-at-home orders, addicts were unable to attend support group meetings in person or visit their therapists for live one-on-one sessions.“During the pandemic, a lot of (drug) programs weren’t able to operate. Street-level outreach was very difficult. People were very isolated,” said Dr. Joshua M. Sharfstein, a health policy expert at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore.
The deadly combination of events resulted in 93,331 overdose deaths in the 12 months ended in December 2020, compared with an estimated 72,151 deaths in 2019, according to provisional data from the National Center for Health Statistics, part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Riots hamper medical services in Covid ravaged South Africa
Essential services, including the country’s vaccine rollout, have been disrupted by the raging unrest that broke out in South Africa last week as the country buckles under the weight of a vicious coronavirus third wave.
Infections for the worst-hit country on the continent have reached well over 2.2 million with 65,142 fatalities.
Violence broke out in Durban, Kwazulu Natal last week after former President Jacob Zuma was jailed for contempt of court. The official death toll from the unrest has risen to 72.
AFP reports:
A vaccination roll-out that was slow for the greater part of the year had started picking up pace last week, before the violence erupted in the southeastern province of KwaZulu-Natal (KZN).
The unrest then spread to the economic hub of Johannesburg.
Local hospital group Netcare said it had closed some of its primary care facilities as a temporary safety measure and suspended vaccinations in KZN.
It has also experienced staff shortages with some workers failing to report for duty due to unavailability of public transport as buses and trains suspended services over the violence.
Medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) reported Wednesday that in Empangeni town, approximately 160 kilometres (100 miles) north of Durban, doctors were forced to stay away because of looting and unrest in the area, hampering the overall Covid-19 response.
“The urgency of ensuring that health facilities and supplies are not targeted during social unrest and violence is crucial, even more so during the height of the current wave of Covid-19 infections,” said Philip Aruna, head of MSF southern Africa.
MSF also expressed concern that people might be staying home with severe Covid-19, which could cause a surge in hospitals once tensions ease and transport resumes.
The unrest has also piled pressure on hospitals, with the injured adding to the pandemic crunch for space. Movement of patients and critical supplies has also been hampered.
Italy reported 23 coronavirus-related deaths on Wednesday against 20 the day before, the health ministry said, while the daily tally of new infections rose to 2,153 from 1,534.
Reuters reports:
Italy has registered 127,831 deaths linked to Covid-19 since its outbreak emerged in February last year, the second-highest toll in Europe after Britain and the eight-highest in the world. The country has reported 4.28 million cases to date.
Patients in hospital with Covid - not including those in intensive care - stood at 1,108 on Wednesday, down from 1,128 a day earlier.
There were seven new admissions to intensive care units, same as Tuesday. The total number of intensive care patients fell to 151 from a previous 157.
Some 210,599 tests for COVID-19 were carried out in the past day, compared with a previous 192,543, the health ministry said.
The death toll from Covid-19 has surpassed 17,000 in Bangladesh amid the government’s decision to relax the nation’s strict lockdown for nine days ahead of Eid-al-adha, reports the Dhaka Tribune:
Bangladeshi health authorities reported 210 new deaths in the 24 hours to 8am on Wednesday, taking the country’s total death toll to 17,052.
The country again saw the death toll rise by 1,000 in only five days after surpassing 16,000 fatalities on July 9 and 15,000 on July 4.
Meanwhile, another 12,383 people tested positive over the same period, taking the tally to 1,059,538, according to latest figures revealed by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
The United States donated 500,000 doses the Pfizer Covid vaccine to Costa Rica on Wednesday as part of Washington’s coronavirus diplomacy to send surplus shots overseas to help fight the global pandemic, the U.S. State Department said.
The shipment is part of the Biden administration’s support for the World Health Organization’s COVAX global vaccine sharing program to help distribute vaccines to poorer nations.
The Central American country of about 5 million people has vaccinated nearly 26% of its population with an average of 1,320 new infections each day, according to Reuters’ Covid-19 tracker.
US State Department spokesperson Ned Price called it “another meaningful step in eradicating COVID-19” in a post on Twitter.
This unique moment in history requires us to be a global leader in delivering safe and effective vaccines. This donation to Costa Rica is another meaningful step in eradicating COVID-19. https://t.co/bLVKbrQVny
— Ned Price (@StateDeptSpox) July 14, 2021
Senegal is experiencing an “unprecedented” surge in COVID-19 infections, the health ministry said on Wednesday, after reporting a new daily record of 733 cases.
The previous record was 529 cases recorded on Sunday.
Senegal has seen relatively few coronavirus-related cases and deaths so far. But like many African countries, it does not have enough doses to vaccinate widely. It has inoculated just 590,969 people out of population of more than 16 million.
Senegal’s health ministry said more than 25% of the 2,854 tests carried out in the past 24 hours came back positive. Senegal has reported 47,596 cases and 1,203 deaths since the start of the pandemic.
Health ministry spokesman Mamadou Ndiaye said:
The situation is unprecedented. We have never seen such an increase in cases… Measures must be taken urgently to reverse the trend… We hope that more energetic measures will be taken well ahead of Tabaski (Eid al-Adha).”
Tabaski is the most important holiday of the year in Senegal and is traditionally celebrated with large family gatherings. There are currently no measures in place to restrict such events.
Malta amends travel advice to allow in British travellers with any AstraZeneca vaccine
British Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has tweeted that Malta has changed its travel advice to allow anyone who’s been administered an Oxford-Astra-Zeneca vaccine into the country, regardless of where the vaccine was manufactured.
The Telegraph reported earlier today that some visitors to Malta were being barred from boarding flights to Malta after receiving doses of AstraZeneca that had been manufactured in India.
In response, Shapps told BBC Breakfast he’d be taking up the issue with the Maltese government.
UPDATE: The #Maltese authorities have amended their travel advice so anyone who has an OXFORD AstraZeneca vaccine in the UK (regardless of manufacture location) is able to travel without being turned away - with all vaccines having gone through rigorous safety and quality checks.
— Rt Hon Grant Shapps MP (@grantshapps) July 14, 2021
According to the European Medicines Agency (EMA) preliminary evidence suggests both doses of Covid-19 vaccines are required to provide adequate protection against the Delta variant.
They say it is currently too early to confirm if and when a booster dose for Covid vaccines will be needed but that they have begun collaborating with the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and national technical advisory groups in any case.
Reuters: Spain’s Constitutional Court, the Tribunal Constitucional, has ruled that a national state of emergency, which included a strict home confinement to curb the first wave of COVID-19 infections last year, was unconstitutional.
Introduced last March, the state of emergency allowed the government to temporarily suspend civil liberties, confining almost all Spaniards to their homes and shutting down all but essential industries.
This is Alex Mistlin retaking the global blog. Feel free to send any tips/corrections/compliments over to alex.mistlin@theguardian.com
Vietnam has broken another grim daily record as cases continue to rapidly rapidly, with 2,934 infections announced on Wednesday.
Most of the cases were in Ho Chi Minh City, the country’s most populous city and commercial hub, according to Reuters.
The country’s health ministry on Wednesday distributed more than 2m Moderna Covid-19 vaccine doses from the US, adding that the doses could not be combined with other vaccines. According to VnExpress, it had previously said it would permit people to receive doses of both AstraZeneca and Pfizer should supplies become limited.
Updated
Singapore reported its highest number of community coronavirus cases in 10 months, linked to an infection cluster in karaoke bars.
Reuters reports that 41 of the 56 new community infections were linked to the karaoke outbreak, the health ministry said. The first known case was a Vietnamese woman who sought medical help on Sunday, local media reported.
The country has yet to reopen karaoke lounges and authorities said the sites of the outbreaks were being run as food and drink outlets, leading the health minister, Ong Ye Kung, to warn that police would enforce the ban.
“Any outlets providing hostess services, dice games and all this very close contact, were never allowed,” he told local media, according to CNA. “So for this to now happen has been troubling (and) disappointing.”
Among those infected was also a cruise passenger hospitalised on Wednesday. Nearly 3,000 passengers and crew were confined to their cruise cabins, awaiting for Covid-19 tests.
Updated
Dr Matshidiso Moeti, the World Health Organization’s regional director for Africa, has encouraged people to continue wearing face coverings as the continent faces a “full-blown third wave”.
Driven by the highly transmissible Delta variant, case numbers across Africa are climbing faster than all earlier peaks, the WHO has warned.
According to Reuters’ tracker, the countries reporting the highest number of new infections daily are South Africa, Tunisia and Zimbabwe. South Africa, Tunisia and Namibia have been registering the largest number of daily deaths over the last seven days.
#WorldMaskWeek is a timely reminder to KEEP IT UP
— Dr Matshidiso Moeti (@MoetiTshidi) July 14, 2021
Life may seem like it's almost back to normal, but the pandemic is not over yet!
Africa is in the midst of a full-blown third wave with new cases & deaths soaring every week. Keep masking & save lives. #ThanksForMasking pic.twitter.com/0ZqikeYQIC
Updated
Daily coronavirus cases in Iran have soared above 23,000 for the first time since late April as the country battles its fifth wave of the pandemic.
The total cases has surpassed 3,440,000 after a further 23,371 cases were detected, a health ministry spokeswoman said in a statement reported by the Iranian Tasnim News Agency.
A further 184 fatalities have been recorded in the past 24 hours, bringing the total death toll in Iran to 86,391, she said.
Over 5.33 million of Iran’s 82.9 people have received a first coronavirus vaccine dose.
As Indonesia’s health service faces an onslaught of coronavirus cases, Reuters offers some insight into how the country has been relying on volunteer ambulance drivers to ferry infected patients to and from hospitals.
Hit by the highly contagious Delta variant, the south-east Asian country reported a record 54,517 cases on Wednesday, up nearly tenfold on the start of June.
“I definitely feel scared (about being infected) … But this is for humanity and I’m doing this from my heart,” said Sunaryo.
Dressed in protective gear, the 51-year-old – who uses one name – has been a volunteer for the Human Initiative, an Indonesian-based charity, for two years in the capital, Jakarta.
“My job is to pick up Covid-19 patients who are going to do isolation to the hospital and also to bring them home,” he said.
Working alongside government ambulances, the volunteers are playing a vital role in supporting the creaking public healthcare service on Java, Indonesia’s most densely populated island.
“The spike in cases of Covid-19 that happened here in Java island and mostly in Jakarta cannot be handled by the government alone,” said Sobari, who coordinates the volunteer ambulance drivers.
The team can get up to 80 calls per day from patients desperate to get to a hospital, though it only has the resources to help 30, he said.
“Support from people and volunteers like us also is a must, and we can end the pandemic faster,” Sobari added.
Updated
Hello, this is Clea Skopeliti taking over while Alex has a break. I’m on Twitter if you’d like to point out any global developments I’ve not included. Cheers!
Barcelona’s deputy mayor for security, Albert Batlle, has revealed that Barcelona city council has asked for a new night curfew to be mandated in the city between one and six in the morning to limit the numbers of people gathering in the city during the current wave of Covid-19.
Catalonia was forced to reintroduce covid restrictions last week in response to a rise in cases with the city reporting 8,555 new infections and 6 deaths in the last 24 hours.
“We are on the verge of a new curfew,” Batlle said.
Updated
Covid-19 has killed at least 4,053,041 people since the outbreak emerged in December 2019, according to a tally from official sources compiled by AFP.
At least 187,779,210 cases of coronavirus have been registered. The vast majority have recovered, though some have continued to experience symptoms weeks or even months later.
The figures are based on daily reports provided by health authorities in each country and they exclude revisions made by other statistical organisations, which show that the number of deaths is much higher.
The World Health Organization estimates that the pandemic’s overall toll could be two to three times higher than official records, due to the excess mortality that is directly and indirectly linked to Covid-19.
Thailand’s state drugmaker has initiated a defamation suit against the prominent chairman of a private hospital operator over his criticism of its procurement of Moderna vaccines, reports Reuters.
The Government Pharmaceutical Organization (GPO) suit accuses Boon Vanasin of providing false information, claiming that the GPO, as coordinator for Moderna vaccines for private hospitals, sought to maximize profit from the public.
The lawsuit comes as the government comes under fire for its vaccine policy, which has so far relied on Sinovac and AstraZeneca vaccines.
Another critic of the strategy, opposition politician Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, is facing charges of insulting the monarchy after accusing the government of over-reliance on a royal-owned firm to produce AstraZeneca vaccines. The crime is punishable by up to 15 years’ imprisonment.
Updated
Alex Mistlin here! Delighted to be bringing you the rest of the day’s Covid news from around the world.
First up, a coronavirus cluster at a Japanese hotel where dozens of Brazilian Olympic team members are staying has raised fresh concerns about infections at the Tokyo Olympics, Reuters reports.
Just over a week before the opening ceremony of the postponed Games, seven staff at the hotel in Hamamatsu city, south-west of Tokyo, had tested positive, a city official said.
A 31-strong Brazilian Olympic delegation, which includes judo athletes, are in a “bubble” in the hotel separated from other guests and have not been infected.
Tokyo is still under a state of emergency and reported 1,149 new cases today – the highest figure for two months.
Concerns around covid safety have fuelled antipathy towards the games from the Japanese population - just 22% of Japanese people say the Games should go ahead, according to an Ipsos poll.
Updated
Today so far …
- This week, the Netherlands has recorded a 500% rise in Covid cases, following moves to fully reopen the economy including opening nightclubs. It has been seen as a warning as to how case numbers might take off in England when restrictions are dropped next week.
- Indonesia recorded its biggest daily increase in coronavirus infections with 54,517 cases on Wednesday, taking the total tally to just over 2.67m cases.
- The Philippines has announced it will ban travellers coming from Indonesia to prevent the spread of the Delta variant.
- Thailand is considering regulating the volume of locally manufactured AstraZeneca Covid vaccines for export, a health official has said, a move that could affect supplies to other Asian countries.
- South Korea on Wednesday tightened social distancing curbs across most of the country to try to combat its worst-ever outbreak of coronavirus after new cases on Tuesday soared past previous daily peaks to 1,615.
- Russia has reported 786 coronavirus-related deaths on Wednesday, which is again the most confirmed in a single day since the beginning of the pandemic.
- France is celebrating Bastille Day with scaled back celebrations and a limited number of spectators allowed in Paris.
- The UK will not be added to the EU travel green list this week. EU diplomats agreed unanimously to add Ukraine, and remove Thailand and Rwanda.
- First minister of Wales Mark Drakeford will make an announcement at noon today on whether the nation will be further lifting Covid restrictions next week.
- US vaccinologist Dr Peter Hotez has said that young children will pay the price if enough US adults don’t get vaccinated. Many more adolescents could become hospitalised, Hotez said, adding up to 30% of children infected will develop long-haul covid.
- People waiting hours to get a Covid-19 test in Sydney’s Fairfield have expressed confusion and frustration at the new requirements for essential workers. Long queues formed on Tuesday night and continued on Wednesday after the New South Wales premier, Gladys Berejiklian, announced essential workers must get tested every three days.
That is it from me, Martin Belam, I will be back with you tomorrow. Andrew Sparrow has the UK live blog. Alex Mistlin will be here with you shortly to take you through the rest of the day’s global Covid news. Thanks for reading, take care and stay safe.
Updated
Indonesia records biggest daily increase in new Covid infections
Indonesia recorded its biggest daily increase in coronavirus infections with 54,517 cases on Wednesday, taking the total tally to just over 2.67 million cases, according to data from the country’s Covid taskforce.
Reuters report the data also showed 991 new deaths, bringing the total number to 69,210. Indonesia has the highest number of coronavirus cases and deaths from Covid in south-east Asia.
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The Philippines will ban travellers coming from Indonesia to prevent the spread of the Delta variant, the presidential spokesperson has said.
Reuters report that the ban will apply to everyone coming from Indonesia or those with recent travel history to the country and will be imposed from 16-31 July, Harry Roque said in a statement.
EU not adding UK to green list of countries this week
Our Jennifer Rankin in Brussels has just tweeted that the UK will not be added to the list of green countries able to travel freely into the bloc. However it is worth remembering that nation states within the EU can set their own rules. She also indicates there has been some progress in linking the EU systems to the UK’s NHS app for proof of vaccination status.
The UK will not be added to the EU travel green list this week.
— Jennifer Rankin (@JenniferMerode) July 14, 2021
EU diplomats agreed unanimously to add Ukraine, remove Thailand and Rwanda. UK not discussed.
This doesn't affect decisions by individual EU countries. Some allow British travellers, some don't.
Talks on linking EU vaccine passport with NHS app are said to be going in the right direction, but no deadline or target date for agreement. Again, individual EU member states can and have done their own thing.
— Jennifer Rankin (@JenniferMerode) July 14, 2021
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Madeline Holcombe has been covering the pandemic in the US for CNN, and this morning she writes that Dr Peter Hotez, a vaccinologist and dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine has said that young children will pay the price if enough US adults don’t get vaccinated. She reports:
In 46 states, the rates of new cases this past week are at least 10% higher than the rates of new cases the previous week, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
Hotez said: “Transmission will continue to accelerate ... and the ones who will also pay the price, in addition to the unvaccinated adolescents, are the little kids who depend on the adults and adolescents to get vaccinated in order to slow or halt transmission.”
As cases increase, only 48.1% of the population is fully vaccinated, according to data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And though many may brush off the risk of low vaccination rates to children, citing their low Covid-19 mortality rates, Hotez said they are still at risk for serious complications.
In Mississippi, seven children are in intensive care with Covid-19, and two are on ventilators, State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs tweeted Tuesday evening.
Many more adolescents could become hospitalized, Hotez said, adding up to 30% of children infected will develop long-haul covid.
Russia has reported 786 coronavirus-related deaths on Wednesday, which is yet again the most confirmed in a single day since the beginning of the pandemic. Reuters note that there were also 23,827 new cases nationwide.
Andrew Sparrow has just put up our UK live blog for today, so you can head there for further rows about face masks on transport and in shops in England.
I’ll be continuing here with the latest global coronavirus developments.
It is Bastille Day in France, and the country is celebrating its national holiday with thousands of troops marching in a Paris parade and traditional parties around the country, after last year’s events were scaled back because of virus fears.
This year those fears are still lurking, but the government decided to go ahead with the parade on the Champs-Élysées as part of a broader effort to return to pre-pandemic activity.
The number of spectators is limited, and they are being restricted to a small section of the parade. In addition, each spectator must show a special pass proving they have been fully vaccinated, recently recovered from the virus or a negative virus test. Similar restrictions will be in place for those gathering to watch an elaborate fireworks show at the Eiffel Tower tonight.
A total of 73 warplanes, medical helicopters and other aircraft will traverse the skies over the Paris region.
AFP reminds us that last year’s Bastille day parade was cancelled and replaced by a static ceremony honouring healthcare workers who died fighting Covid.
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Grant Shapps, the UK transport secretary, has said he always “expected, and indeed, wanted” some train, bus and rail companies to insist on mask-wearing on their services, despite the government removing legal requirements for face coverings.
The minister said he backed the decision of Sadiq Khan, the London mayor, to carry on requiring face coverings on public transport in the capital, even though the government had previously said it wanted to move to a system of “common sense” and “personal responsibility” when it comes to mask-wearing.
“Whilst we are going from this being a legal requirement to guidelines, we do expect individual carriers to make sure they are putting in place whatever is appropriate for their network,” he told Sky News.
“The airlines have already said that you will need to carry on wearing masks on those. It is very much in line with what we expected – indeed wanted – to happen.”
Khan said the two motivations for continuing compulsory face masks on the London transport network were “public safety and public reassurance”. He said it was especially important that those who are vulnerable should feel safe while travelling.
Asked whether the prime minister was trying to gain favour with his party by removing the requirement for masks, while shifting responsibility for bringing in precautions on to TFL, Khan told the BBC’s Today programme: “I wish anybody luck in reading Boris Johnson’s mind. I certainly can’t.”
Read more of Rowena Mason’s report here: Shapps – mask-wearing expected to remain on public transport
A quick Reuters snap here that official figures show that Malaysia reported 11,618 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, a second straight day of record case numbers.
Thailand is considering restricting exports of locally produced AstraZeneca doses
Thailand is considering regulating the volume of locally manufactured AstraZeneca Covid vaccines for export, a health official has said, a move that could impact supplies to other Asian countries.
The health ministry will talk to AstraZeneca with the aim of securing a sufficient amount locally before issuing the order, said Nakorn Premsri, director of the National Vaccine Institute.
“Right now we will talk with the vaccine manufacturer so they can deliver the vaccine to Thailand in a suitable manner that matches the outbreak situation in the country,” Nakorn told reporters.
Reuters reports that Thailand is suffering its worst coronavirus outbreak yet, with more than 8,000 new cases reported on many days this month, putting a strain on healthcare and testing capacity in the densely populated capital Bangkok and surrounding provinces.
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Another quick quote from UK transport secretary Grant Shapps’ media appearances this morning. He warned on BBC Breakfast that some countries on the green list for travel could be moved to the amber list.
PA Media notes that reports have suggested the government is considering moving the Spanish Balearic islands back to amber a fortnight after they were cleared for quarantine-free travel, and quote him saying:
We review these every three weeks. I hope we have made very clear to everybody when booking trips at the moment there is always the chance that countries will move around.
Some countries may go to the red list, some countries may go to the green, but some may move the other way to the amber list.
It is a fact of life that they will continue to move around as the virus continues to develop and change globally.
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I mentioned earlier the frustration in Australia over large queues for Covid tests after the New South Wales government ordered essential workers in the Fairfield LGA to get tested every three days. Here’s our video report from on the ground there.
Union: railway staff 'dangerously exposed' to 'hostile and confrontational' situations over mask rules
Alan Jones, PA Media’s industrial correspondent, has this response to the face masks on transport in England issue from the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT).
The RMT general secretary, Mick Lynch, said: “Whilst we welcome the approach from the London mayor this morning, which is consistent with the policies currently adopted in Scotland, Wales and on Eurostar, we now have the ludicrous position where a passenger travelling through London will have different rules on the tube and the main line services.
“There will also be a change of policy on trains at the Welsh and Scottish borders which is a total nonsense, and will leave staff right at the sharp end and dangerously exposed when it comes to enforcement.
“As a result of this chaotic approach we now have a situation where the London measures are not enforceable by law, which means RMT members will be thrown into a hostile and confrontational situation from next Monday at heightened risk of abuse and assault.
“That is wholly down to the confused, inconsistent and botched messaging from the government. RMT will continue to support and advise our members in their legal right to a safe place of work.”
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Prof Dame Sarah Gilbert, one of the scientists behind the AstraZeneca Covid-19 jab, has appeared on ITV’s Good Morning Britain, and PA Media quotes her saying:
None of the protective measures are completely effective on their own and we get the best protection when we link up different ways of protecting ourselves – so if we get everybody who is eligible for the vaccine to have the vaccine, if we wear a face mask indoors in crowded areas.
Remember, we wear a mask to protect other people – they’re not to protect us so much as to protect other people from us, from the risk that we might be infected, and I think it’s a sign of respect, if you’re in a situation where you might be able to transmit the virus to somebody else, to keep the mask on.
I will follow Chris Whitty’s advice to wear a mask in indoor crowded situations, or if anybody else was particularly wanting me to wear a mask then I would.
Here’s a video where our science correspondent Natalie Grover looks at exactly why masks are more about protecting others than ourselves, and where we still might want to wear them.
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Delta variant gains ground in US as outbreaks highlight vaccine divide
A cluster of midwestern and southern states have emerged as a new center of Covid-19 outbreaks, as the highly transmissible Delta variant sweeps across poorly vaccinated populations in the US.
The news marks a potentially serious setback for the Biden administration’s attempts to curb and control the pandemic as the Delta variant – which has wreaked havoc in the UK and elsewhere – is starting to spread more widely in America.
It also comes as life in much of the US has started to return to near normal, with many Covid-19 restrictions having been lifted, and as the vaccination program has slowed down.
Rates of Covid-19 cases in Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi are among the highest in the country, and their vaccination rates among the lowest. Covid also appears to be gaining ground in the American west.
Even so, overall numbers of new Covid-19 cases are low. New infections are less than one-tenth the average daily rate at the height of the pandemic in January, even as they have doubled in the last two weeks.
“We are not where we were in April 2020,” said Dr David Dowdy, an associate professor of epidemiology at Johns Hopkins University and an expert in infectious diseases. Nevertheless, he said, “We’ve seen those counts can go up substantially and quickly, so we need to be cautious but without panicking.”
Localised outbreaks highlight a growing divide in vaccine adoption among US states, as a complex set of conditions have left Republican-leaning and rural places with lower overall vaccination rates than Democratic-leaning states.
Read more of Jessica Glenza’s report here: Delta variant gains ground in US as outbreaks highlight vaccine divide
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China’s daily vaccination numbers are huge again. Reuters report the official figures from yesterday 10.6m doses, taking the total administered to 1.402bn doses
Here’s how mayor of London Sadiq Khan tweeted earlier about his plans on face masks this morning – they will stay in force on London’s public transport.
BREAKING: Face coverings will remain compulsory on @TfL.
— Sadiq Khan (@SadiqKhan) July 14, 2021
The wearing of face coverings helps reduce the spread of Covid, and crucially gives Londoners confidence to travel - vital to our economic recovery.
My mask protects you, your mask protects me.https://t.co/p26mPrF82F
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On Sky News, UK transport secretary Grant Shapps has backed the decision by Transport for London to require passengers to carry on wearing masks.
Shapps said the decision was in line with what ministers expected after it was announced that most lockdown restrictions in England would end from Monday. PA Media quotes him saying:
Whilst we are going from this being a legal requirement to guidelines, we do expect individual carriers to make sure they are putting in place whatever is appropriate for their network.
The airlines have already said that you will need to carry on wearing masks on those. It is very much in line with what we expected – indeed wanted – to happen.
It does remain slightly unclear how if you have a rule in place that something must be done, the way to ensure that it continues to be done, because you want it to be done, is to remove the rule that it must be done.
"This is very much in line with what we expected - even wanted - to happen."
— Sky News (@SkyNews) July 14, 2021
Transport Secretary @GrantShapps says he 'wanted' and 'expected' some transport organisations to keep on enforcing masks after July 19.#KayBurley
Live #COVID19 updates 👉 https://t.co/DCgxFxKjAx pic.twitter.com/8NkinM0HuJ
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A bit more on those Netherlands numbers from Mike Corder at Associated Press. He notes that more than 46% of the Netherlands’ adult population is fully vaccinated, and more than 77% of the country’s adults have had at least one shot. Health authorities have said more than 1.3 million people would receive their first or second doses this week.
Health minister Hugo de Jonge had said Monday that the late June loosening of restrictions combined with a lack of social distancing and the delta variant “has had, of course, an accelerating effect. You can unfortunately see that with hindsight”.
Infections among people ages 18-24 surged by 262%, followed by a 191% rise in 25- to 29-year-olds.
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I mentioned earlier that there has been a Covid outbreak in a Carrier Strike Group (CSG), which includes the Royal Navy’s flagship HMS Queen Elizabeth [See 7.07am]. That’s not the only trouble at sea in the news this morning.
Reuters report that a Genting Cruise Lines’ ship on a “cruise to nowhere” has returned to Singapore after a passenger was suspected of having contracted Covid and the nearly 3,000 passengers and crew on board have been confined to their cabins.
A 40-year-old passenger tested positive onboard and had been conveyed to hospital for further testing after the ship docked early on Wednesday, the Singapore Tourism Board said.
“The passenger was identified as a close contact of a confirmed case on land, and was immediately isolated as part of onboard health protocols,” the board said in a statement.
The cruises to nowhere, restricted to Singapore residents, have become popular during the pandemic with very limited other travel opportunities because of coronavirus restrictions.
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Announcement on changes to Wales restrictions expected at noon
As ever, the main media in the UK very much have their focus on UK government announcements and debates that only affect England, but it is an important step for Wales today, with first minister Mark Drakeford expected to make an announcement at noon. Cathy Owen for Wales Online sums up what is expected:
He is expected to confirm whether Wales can now move to “alert level 1” on Monday - with the easing of some restrictions that had been delayed because of the Delta variant.
The first minister will also publish an updated coronavirus control plan which will set out the future move to alert level 0. The earliest this could happen is the next three-weekly lockdown review on 9 August – which is the same date at which Scotland is planning to lift nearly all remaining lockdown restrictions.
Perhaps the bigger decision for Mr Drakeford are any changes that he signals for the following lockdown review on 9 August. The hopes of summer festivals like Green Man and other major events will be that he follows England and Scotland and announces that the remaining restrictions on the numbers of people who can gather outside will be lifted.
Another key decision for Wales will be whether to maintain limits on the number of people who can meet indoors in private homes and businesses.
What we do know already is that face masks will continue to be required by law on public transport and in medical settings in Wales. Ministers are undecided if wearing masks will continue to be law in shops.
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Netherlands sees 500% rise in cases after scrapping all restrictions
There’s news out of the Netherlands this morning that some are calling a worrying sign of what may be in store for England once restrictions are dropped. Sky News report that:
The Netherlands has seen a huge surge in cases after it scrapped nearly all remaining restrictions and reopened nightclubs in late June. Nightclubs have been closed again until at least 13 August and bars will have to shut at midnight.
Nearly 52,000 people in the Netherlands tested positive for Covid-19 over the past week – increasing by more than 500%. Officials said that of the infections that could be tracked to their source, 37% happened in a hospitality venue such as a bar or club.
One positive sign though is that hospital admissions in the Netherlands have risen only by 11%, which equates to just 60 patients. Nevertheless it does suggest that the see-saw between reopening and restrictions may continue across Europe for some time to come.
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Here’s how Politico’s London Playbook summed up this face mask mess in England this morning:
No 10’s decision to no longer require people by law to wear masks in enclosed spaces from 19 July seemed to unravel as soon as polling showed the public overwhelmingly wanted face coverings to remain mandatory on public transport and in shops. A Tory MP yesterday told Playbook that since that moment ministers realized they aren’t in tune with the public on the next step in the roadmap, leading to their somewhat confused positions of making it legal to go maskless while also urging people to wear them, and telling businesses to use Covid passports but not making them compulsory.
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With the issue of whether people will need to wear face masks on public transport in England from next week still seeming to be a national obsession, it is transport secretary Grant Shapps who is doing the media round this morning in the UK. I’ll have some fuller quotes from him in due course, but for now the message is clear: wear a mask, but don’t always wear a mask.
Grant Shapps says mask policy is "pretty straightforward"
— Tamara Cohen (@tamcohen) July 14, 2021
If you are alone on an empty train, you may not feel the need to wear a mask.
But if you are on an empty bus in London - where it will be a TfL condition of carriage - then you should @SkyNews
People waiting hours to get a Covid-19 test in Sydney’s Fairfield have expressed confusion and frustration at the new requirements for essential workers.
Long queues formed on Tuesday night and continued on Wednesday after the New South Wales premier, Gladys Berejiklian, announced essential workers living in the Fairfield local government area (LGA) must get tested every three days.
Berejiklian said on Wednesday that asymptomatic essential workers could attend Covid testing clinics near their workplaces to ease pressure on Fairfield’s test sites, but conceded the new rules had created long waiting times.
“We accept that people had to wait a long time. We experienced this as well at the Northern Beaches. What is important for us is to communicate our decisions as quickly as we can and then provide that operational support,” she said.
But waiting lines remained long at the Fairfield Showground testing site on Wednesday, with cars snaking through the carparks and spilling out on to Smithfield Road.
Lara Trkulja, an essential healthcare worker, held back tears as she explained her frustrations at the mandate. “It’s insane that I have to do this. I’ve been waiting here for an hour and a half, and we’re barely close,” she said.
“It’s just too draining at the moment. You come home emotionally and physically drained, and then you have to line up again. It’s just too much.
Read more of Mostafa Rachwani’s report here: ‘It’s just too much’: frustrated Fairfield residents queue for hours for mandatory Covid tests in Sydney
Good morning, it is Martin Belam here in London taking over from Helen Sullivan for the next few hours. There has been a coronavirus outbreak in the Carrier Strike Group (CSG) which includes the Royal Navy’s flagship HMS Queen Elizabeth, it has been confirmed.
The aircraft carrier is about a quarter of the way through a 28-week deployment leading the CSG, which includes a US destroyer and 10 Marine Corps F35-B fighters, and is currently in the Indo-Pacific.
PA report a Royal Navy spokesman said in a statement: “As part of routine testing, a small number of crew from the Carrier Strike Group have tested positive for Covid-19.
“All personnel deployed in the UK CSG have received both doses of the Covid vaccine and there are a number of mitigation measures on board including masks, social distancing and a track and trace system.
“The Carrier Strike Group will continue to deliver their operational tasks and there are no effects on the deployment.”
One in five Australians are reporting high or very high levels of psychological distress linked to the Covid 19 pandemic, with young people, women and those living with a disability the most affected by poor mental health.
A survey conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics into the household impact of Covid-19 also reveals that the recent Victorian outbreak led to a surge in psychological distress with almost a third of people in the state reporting feelings associated with depression and anxiety compared with 18% in the rest of Australia:
Interest in Tokyo Olympics ‘muted’
Global interest in the Tokyo Olympics is muted, an Ipsos poll of 28 countries showed, amid concerns over Covid in Japan and withdrawals of high-profile athletes, with the host country among the most disinterested.
The poll released on Tuesday found a global average of 46% interest in the Games, but excitement varied across markets, with less than 35% in Japan.
The pandemic-hit Olympics, due to start in nine days, have lost public support amid lingering concerns over infection risks and a state of emergency being declared in Tokyo, despite organisers promising strict coronavirus measures.
Spectators have been barred from attending all Olympic events in Tokyo and surrounding regions and Japanese officials are asking residents to watch the Games on TV to keep the movement of people to a minimum.
Only 22% of Japanese say the Games should go ahead, the Ipsos survey showed.
Tokyo governor Yuriko Koike said a sufficient number of hospitals combined with a speed-up in the Covid vaccination rollout among the elderly meant the city will be able to hold “safe and secure” Olympics.
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South Korea reports 1,615 new cases as distancing rules tightened for most of country
South Korea on Wednesday tightened social distancing curbs across most of the country to try to combat its worst-ever outbreak of coronavirus after new cases on Tuesday soared past previous daily peaks to 1,615.
Amid growing concerns over the more contagious Delta variant and a stagnating vaccine rollout, the latest daily tally easily surpassed the previous record – last Friday’s 1,378.
Cluster infections have spread rapidly around the capital Seoul and neighbouring areas fuelled by the Delta variant, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said.
Prime minister Kim Boo-kyum said from Thursday the government would tighten distancing rules across most of the country, with the exception of some southern regions, to level 2 on the country’s four-level scale. Under level 2, gatherings of more than eight people are banned, and restaurants and bars must close by midnight.
That is still two levels below the toughest curbs available to the government. Those restrictions – level 4, including a ban on gatherings of more than two people after 6pm – were imposed from Monday in the greater Seoul area.
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Summary
Hello and welcome to today’s live coverage of the coronavirus pandemic with me, Helen Sullivan.
South Korea on Wednesday again tightened social distancing curbs across most of the country to try to combat its worst-ever outbreak of coronavirus after new cases soared past previous daily peaks to 1,615.
Meanwhile, global interest in the Tokyo Olympics is muted, an Ipsos poll of 28 countries showed, amid concerns over Covid in Japan and withdrawals of high-profile athletes, with the host country among the most uninterested.
- The death toll in a fire that spread through a coronavirus hospital in southern Iraq is at least 92 with more than 100 others injured, health officials said, as an angry crowd blaming local authorities for negligence gathered near the city’s morgue as two police vehicles were torched in Nasireyah.
- Daily vaccinations hit a new high in France on Tuesday. “Today you are 792,339 to have received a first jab, a new record,” the country’s prime minister Jean Castex wrote on Twitter.
- German chancellor Angela Merkel said she is not planning to follow France and other countries in introducing compulsory Covid-19 vaccinations for parts of the population, despite the number of jabs given yesterday at its lowest since February amid apparent hesitancy.
- Thailand defended mixing two different Covid-19 vaccines, after the WHO’s top scientist warned it was a “dangerous trend” not backed by evidence.
- The European Medicines Agency said it is analysing data on rare cases of a nerve disorder reported among recipients of Johnson & Johnson’s Covid-19 vaccine, after the US added a warning label to the shot.
- Cyprus has reported a record-high number of new Covid-19 infections, health ministry data showed, with the number of positive cases surging past 1,000.
- Greece will require customers at indoor restaurants, bars and cafes to prove they have been vaccinated against Covid-19, the government announced.
- Pfizer has been making a hard sell for emergency approval of boosters – additional doses given to those already vaccinated, especially immunocompromised adults.
- Bangladesh is to lift its nationwide lockdown for the country’s second-biggest religious festival, the government has said, even as new infections rise. The removal of the curbs would “normalise economic activities” ahead of the celebrations, it added. Tens of millions of people usually head back to their villages to mark Eid al-Adha with their families.
- India’s Covid vaccination rollout has continued to falter due to supply shortages and vaccine hesitancy, casting doubt on the government’s pledge to vaccinate the entire population by December.
- Philippine police temporarily suspended a requirement for officers seeking promotion to meet body fat targets, after chiefs argued pandemic restrictions had made it difficult for officers to work out and lose weight following a study that showed almost 35% of personnel were overweight and nearly 10% obese.
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