November 26, 2020

Russia reports record highs of 25,487 new cases, 524 deaths

Russia has reported a record high of 25,487 new infections, bringing the national tally to 2,187,990.

Authorities also reported a record high of 524 deaths related to in the last 24 hours, pushing the official death toll to 38,062. 

Moscow extends self-isolation period until January 15

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin has extended a recommended self-isolation period for residents older than 65 and those risk groups through New Year until January 15 as a precaution against the coronavirus pandemic.

Virus cases have surged nationwide since September, but authorities have resisted imposing a stringent lockdown, saying that targeted measures should be enough.

Sobyanin also said at least that 30 percent of staff at companies in the capital who had already been told to work remotely as a precaution should continue to do so until Jan. 15.

Moscow, a bustling city of more than 12.5 million people, reports thousands of new coronavirus cases on a daily basis. 

Sudan’s Mahdi dies

Leading Sudanese politician and former prime minister Sadiq Al Mahdi has died in hospital in the United Arab Emirates after being infected with coronavirus, family sources said early on Thursday.

Mahdi, 84, was Sudan’s last democratically elected prime minister and was overthrown in 1989 in the military coup that brought former president Omar Al Bashir to power.

Ukraine confirms record daily high of 15,331 new cases

Ukraine has registered a record 15,331 new cases in the past 24 hours, health minister Maksym Stepanov said, up from a previous record of 14,580 reported on November 21.

He said the total number of cases had climbed to 677,189, with 11,717 deaths. 

India records 44,489 new cases

India has recorded 44,489 new infections, data from the health ministry showed, the 19th straight day that single-day cases have stayed below the 50,000 mark.

India’s tally now stands at 9.27 million, the second-highest in the world, after the United States.

Deaths rose by 524, taking the total to 135,223.

Six Pakistan cricketers positive in New Zealand

Six of Pakistan’s squad have tested positive, hosts New Zealand Cricket said Thursday, throwing preparations for their five-match tour into turmoil and causing a scare in a country that has largely eradicated the virus.

The squad’s “exemption to train while in managed isolation has been put on hold until investigations have been completed”, the governing body said, adding that the six positive players would be moved into strict quarantine.

New Zealand’s ministry of health said 53 team members passed a symptom check before leaving Lahore and were tested on arrival in Christchurch on November 24.

Six of those results have come back positive, although two of the six cases are believed to be “historical”.

Germany extends restrictions until December 20

Germany has extended coronavirus restrictions until December 20 as it struggles to contain a second wave of the pandemic.

Chancellor Angela Merkel made the announcement after a meeting with the country’s 16 state governors via videoconference.

Merkel said the restrictions could be extended until the beginning of January if necessary.

She called on citizens to follow hygiene and social distancing rules, avoid unnecessary contact with others and to stay at home as much as possible.

South Korea cases jump over 500 amid reimposed rules

South Korea has recorded more than 500 new coronavirus cases for the first time in about eight months.

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said Thursday the 583 additional cases in the past 24 hours took the national tally to 32,318 including 515 deaths.

South Korea has been experiencing a spike in new infections since it relaxed stringent social distancing rules last month. To deal with the latest resurgence, the country on Tuesday reimposed tough distancing guidelines in Seoul and some other areas.

Government records show that 402 of the 583 newly reported cases were found in the Seoul metropolitan area, where half of the country’s 51 million people resides.

Germany’s confirmed cases rise by 22,268 – RKI

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany has increased by 22,268 to 983,588, data from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases showed. 

The reported death toll rose by 389 to 15,160, the tally showed.

Mexico sees over 850 fatalities

Mexico’s health ministry has reported 10,335 additional cases of the novel coronavirus and 858 more deaths in the country, bringing the official number of infections to 1,070,487 and the death toll to 103,597.

Brazil adds over 650 deaths

Brazil has reported 47,898 new cases of the coronavirus and 654 additional deaths over the past 24 hours, the country’s health ministry said.

South Korea adds 500 new cases

South Korea has reported 500 new coronavirus cases on Thursday, the highest since March, the Yonhap news agency said citing Health Minister Park Neung-hoo.

Germany to extend partial lockdown until Dec 20

Germany will extend restrictive measures imposed early this month under a month-long “lockdown light” to slow the spread of the coronavirus until December 20, Chancellor Angela Merkel said.

“The exponential growth of infection numbers has been broken, the steep curve has become a flattened curve,” Merkel said after talks with leaders of Germany’s federal states on Wednesday.

“But infection numbers remain at a level that is far too high. The situation doesn’t allow us to lift the measures agreed for November.”

AstraZeneca admits manufacturing error

AstraZeneca and Oxford University have acknowledged a manufacturing error that is raising questions about preliminary results of their experimental Covid-19 vaccine.

A statement describing the error came days after the company and the university described the shots as “highly effective” and made no mention of why some study participants didn’t receive as much vaccine in the first of two shots as expected.

In a surprise, the group of volunteers that got a lower dose seemed to be much better protected than the volunteers who got two full doses. In the low-dose group, AstraZeneca said, the vaccine appeared to be 90 percent effective. 

In the group that got two full doses, the vaccine appeared to be 62 percent effective. Combined, the drug makers said the vaccine appeared to be 70 percent effective. But the way in which the results were arrived at and reported by the companies has led to pointed questions from experts.

Source: TRTWorld and agencies