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HEALTH-VIRUS-WORLD,FACTS
Coronavirus: Latest global developments
PARIS, March 19, 2021 (BSS/AFP) – Here are the latest developments in
the coronavirus crisis:
– AstraZeneca’s wobbly restart –
AstraZeneca may have got the all-clear from EU regulators after blood
clot concerns but Norway, Sweden and Denmark are among the countries that say
they will not yet restart using the vaccine while France — whose 55-year-old
prime minister is to due to get the jab Thursday — now recommends it only
for over-55s.
– ‘Exponential’ spread –
Infection numbers in Germany are rising at an “exponential rate” as
highly contagious variants drive up case numbers in the EU’s biggest country,
health authorities warn.
– Vaccines and votes –
Candidates are hitting the streets in Israel ahead of its election as a
world-beating vaccination campaign enables face-to-face voter contact. Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is hoping the inoculation effort will win him a
majority in Tuesday’s vote.
– France’s limited lockdown –
Millions across France are preparing to enter a new month-long limited
lockdown from Saturday after the country recorded its highest new caseload in
nearly four months.
Non-essential businesses will close in Paris and several other areas
mainly in northern France, although schools will stay open.
– Papua disaster looms –
International help is not coming fast enough to avert a pandemic disaster
in Papua New Guinea, experts have warned, as the country braces for a further
spike in infections by shuttering schools and approving the use of mass
graves.
– Mumbai surge –
India’s wealthiest state Maharashtra and its capital Mumbai have recorded
the most daily cases since the pandemic began, stoking a new nationwide wave.
Several badly hit states including Maharashtra, Gujarat and Madhya
Pradesh have imposed fresh restrictions such as curbs on movement and public
gatherings in some cities.
– Those happy Finns –
For a fourth year running Finland has come top of the ranking of the
world’s happiest countries in a UN-sponsored report, which surprisingly
showed that on average, people around the world did not report a decline in
well-being last year.
“One possible explanation is that people see Covid-19 as a common outside
threat affecting everybody and that this has generated a greater sense of
solidarity and fellow-feeling,” John Helliwell, one of the report’s
compilers, said in a statement.
– Jabs for footballers? –
England manager Gareth Southgate says footballers should be offered
vaccines soon as they are being asked to take risks by playing regularly
during the pandemic.
– Nearly 2.7 million dead –
At least 2,692,313 million people have died of coronavirus around the
world since the outbreak began in December 2019.
The US is the worst-affected country with 539,699 deaths followed by
Brazil (287,499), Mexico (196,606), India (159,370) and Britain (125,926).
BSS/AFP/IJ/1903 hrs