Vaccination drive
Global Covid cases near 196 million
The overall number of global Covid cases is fast approaching the 196-million mark, as the world battles a devastating second wave of the pandemic.
According to US-based Johns Hopkins University (JHU), the total case count mounted to 195,889,920 while the death toll from the virus reached 4,186,319 on Thursday morning.
So far, 3,960,681,905 vaccine doses have been administered across the globe.
Read: Liquid Medical Oxygen and Covid-19 Treatment: Things we need to know
The Delta variant of Covid-19 has now been detected in 124 territories worldwide, the World Health Organization (WHO) said recently.
The US, which is the world's worst-hit country in terms of both cases and deaths, has so far logged 34,670,685 cases. Besides, 611,780 people have lost their lives in the US to date, as per the JHU data.
Brazil registered 1,344 more Covid-19 fatalities in 24 hours, raising its national death toll to 553,179, the health ministry said on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the total caseload rose to 19,797,086 after 48,013 new cases were detected during the period.
Brazil currently has the world's second-highest pandemic death toll after the United States, and the third-largest caseload after the United States and India.
The third worst-hit country, India's Covid-19 case count rose to 31,484,605 on Thursday morning and the fatalities touched 422,022.
Situation in Bangladesh
As the highly transmissible Delta variant continues to devastate the country, Bangladesh on Wednesday logged 237 coronavirus-related deaths in 24 hours.
With the new deaths, the country's fatality figures have topped 20,016. Bangladesh has been seeing nearly 200 deaths every day for the past two weeks and breaking records of daily cases and deaths almost every other day.
Besides, 16,230 more people came out Covid positive after the test of 53,877 samples during the period, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
Read:Man dies while waiting in a long line to give Covid sample, says doctor
This was the highest-ever single-day transmission after the country saw a record 15,192 Covid cases on Monday. With the new numbers, the total caseload has mounted to 1,210,982.
Vaccination campaign to gain momentum
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday reaffirmed her government's commitment to ensure Covid-19 vaccine doses for all in the country.
The prime minister said she had already given directives to vaccinate the helping hands of a family, including domestic helps and drivers, so that all the members of a family could remain protected.
The prime minister said 1.87 crore people were already vaccinated and all would be brought under the vaccination programme.
The Covid-19 vaccination programme at the union level will start across the country on August 7, said Bangladesh Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal on Tuesday.
“The prime minister has ordered speeding up the vaccination drive. One can get vaccinated at the union level showing one's NID card. Vaccination centres will be set up in unions across the country before August 7,” he said.
Those who do not have any NID will be vaccinated under a special arrangement, he added.
Meanwhile, the government has decided to vaccinate the Rohingya refugees as part of an inclusive vaccination programme.
Although no start date has been offered, those who are above 55 years will be considered in the first phase as per a preliminary decision.
Read: Covid death toll in Bangladesh crosses 20,000 with 237 new fatalities
Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen, while talking to reporters on Tuesday, said the host communities around the Rohingya camps have frequent communication with the refugees and the government wants to keep both protected as well.
Bangladesh will resume vaccination with Oxford-Astrazeneca Covid jabs soon, DGHS spokesperson Prof Dr Nazmul Islam said on Wednesday.
“We had to stop giving Astrazeneca vaccine to people halfway through due to its short supply. But we’re hopeful of resuming its rollout soon as we’ve received supplies from Japan,” he said at the regular DGHS briefing.
Global Covid cases top 195 million
The global Covid-19 caseload has now surpassed 195 million as the highly contagious Delta variant continues to devastate several countries even with mass inoculations underway.
The total caseload and fatalities stand at 195,265,112 and 4,176,605 respectively, as of Wednesday morning, according to Johns Hopkins University (JHU).
So far, 3,917,974,546 vaccine doses have been administered across the globe.
The US, which is the world's worst-hit country in terms of both cases and deaths, has so far logged 34,603,658 cases. Besides, 611,409 people have lost their lives in the US to date, as per the JHU data.
Read: Myanmar: Expert calls for “COVID ceasefire”; urges new UN resolution
Brazil registered 578 more Covid-19 deaths in the past 24 hours, raising its national death toll to 550,502, the health ministry said on Monday.
Meanwhile, the total caseload rose to 19,707,662 after 18,999 new cases were detected during the period.
Brazil currently has the world's second-highest pandemic death toll after the United States, and the third-largest caseload after the United States and India.
The third worst-hit country, India's Covid-19 tally rose to 31,440,951 on Tuesday morning as 29,689 new cases were registered in 24 hours across the country, as per the federal health ministry's latest data.
"India reports less than 30,000 daily cases after 132 days," said a statement issued by the ministry.
Besides, as many as 415 deaths due to the pandemic since Monday morning took the total death toll to 421,382.
Situation in Bangladesh
As the country battles a brutal wave of the pandemic, Bangladesh logged a record-high 258 coronavirus-related deaths in 24 hours till Tuesday morning, shattering the previous day's record of 247.
The country has been seeing nearly 200 deaths every day for the past two weeks and breaking records of daily cases and deaths almost every other day.
Besides, 14,925 more people came out Covid positive after the test of 52,478 samples, according to a handout issued by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
Read:DGHS closes 11 private Covid testing booths in Rooppur due to irregularities
The country saw the highest-ever 15,192 Covid cases on Monday.
With the new numbers, the death tally from Covid-19 reached 19,779 on Tuesday, while the caseload mounted to 1,194,752.
Meanwhile, the daily test-positivity rate declined to 28.44% from Monday's 29.82% while the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends a 5% or below rate.
Besides, the case fatality rate rose to 1.66% during the period after remaining unchanged at 1.65% for a few days, said the DGHS.
Vaccination campaign to gain momentum
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday reaffirmed her government's commitment to ensure Covid-19 vaccine doses for all in any case.
The prime minister said she has already given directives to vaccinate the helping hands of a family, including domestic helps and drivers, so that all of a family can remain protected.
The prime minister said 1.87 crore people have so far been vaccinated and all will be brought under the vaccination programme.
The Covid-19 vaccination programme at union level will start across the country on August 7, said Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal on Tuesday.
“The prime minister has ordered speeding up the vaccination drive. One can get vaccinated at the union level showing one's NID card. Vaccination centres will be set up in unions across the country before August 7,” he said.
Read:Govt to vaccinate Rohingyas gradually starting with above-55s: Foreign Secretary
Those who do not have any NID will be vaccinated under a special arrangement, he added.
Meanwhile, the government decided to vaccinate the Rohingya refugees as part of an inclusive vaccination programme.
Although no start date was offered, those who are above 55 years will be considered in the first phase as per a preliminary decision.
Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen, while talking to reporters on Tuesday, said the host communities around the Rohingya camps have frequent communication with the refugees and the government wants to keep both protected as well.
Covid fatality rate 90% among elderly villagers, says health minister
mphasizing the importance of vaccination for Covid-19 in rural areas, Health and Family Planning Minister Zahid Maleque Monday said 70% of Covid patients in hospitals are older people from villages while the fatality rate among them is 90%.
The national vaccination campaign will now be accelerated at ward, union and upazila levels of the country as per directives of the prime minister, Maleque said while briefing reporters after attending the Cabinet meeting on Monday.
An initiative has been taken to vaccinate elderly people from the ward level as they are more reluctant about receiving it, the minister said, stressing the need for ensuring more Covid-19 tests of the samples coming from rural areas.
Read:Covid-19 Surge: Too many patients for a few hospital beds
He said, “Some 90% of hospital beds are occupied with patients and our health workers are now exhausted.”
Maleque said the government will appoint 4,000 more doctors and nurses soon to deal the with the situation and urged the authorities concerned to be stricter as the country may face terrible consequences if the lockdown is not maintained properly.
“This is unfortunate the way people are moving outside and travelling recklessly just on the fourth day of the lockdown, breaking the rules and risking their lives,” said Maleque.
He said the lockdown has to be made successful as there is no alternative to it to contain the Covid-19 spread.
Read: Bangladesh to get 21 crore vaccine doses early next year: Minister
Global Covid cases near 194 million
The global Covid-19 caseload is inching closer to the 194-million mark, as the second wave of the pandemic continues to devastate countries across the world even amid the mass inoculations efforts.
The total caseload and fatalities stand at 193,639,328 and 4,151,435, respectively, as of Sunday morning, according to Johns Hopkins University (JHU).
Read:Countries have responsibility to help scientists find Covid origin: WHO
So far, 3,815,101,425 vaccine doses have been administered across the globe.
The US, which is the world's worst-hit country in terms of both cases and deaths, has so far logged 34,427,939 cases. Besides, 610,834 people have lost their lives in the US to date, as per the JHU data.
Brazil registered 1,108 more Covid-19 deaths in the past 24 hours, raising its national death toll to 549,448, the Ministry of Health reported on Saturday.
Additionally, another 38,091 new cases were reported in the same 24 hours, bringing the total caseload to 19,670,534.
Brazil currently has the world's second-highest pandemic death toll after the United States and the third-largest caseload after the United States and India.
Read: Global Covid fatalities up one-third over past week
The third worst-hit country, India's COVID-19 tally rose to 31,332,159 on Saturday as 39,097 new cases were registered during the past 24 hours across the country, showed the federal health ministry's latest data.
Besides, 546 deaths due to the pandemic since Friday morning took the death toll to 420,016.
Situation in Bangladesh
Although the country saw well below 200 fatalities for three consecutive days as of Friday, it came close to the grim landmark again as 195 people died of Covid-19 in 24 hours till Saturday morning.
Bangladesh recorded 6,780 new cases of infections during the period after testing 20,827 samples.
With Covid's Delta variant spreading fast, the country's fatalities had been hovering at nearly 200 for the last two weeks. It reported the highest daily Covid-19 fatality number – 231 – on July 19 and 13,768 infections on the 12th of the month.
Read:Bangladesh to go for Covid vaccine coproduction soon: FM
There have been 1,153,344 infections and 19,046 coronavirus deaths here since the pandemic started, according to a handout issued by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
Meanwhile, the daily test positivity rate increased to 32.55 % from Friday's 31.05%, when the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends a 5% or below rate.
The death rate increased to 1.65% after remaining static at 1.64%for some days.
Global Covid cases near 192 million
The global Covid-19 caseload is inching closer to the 192-million mark, as the second wave of the pandemic continues to devastate countries across the world even with mass inoculations underway.
The total caseload and fatalities stand at 191,951,455 and 4,126,444, respectively, as of Thursday morning, according to Johns Hopkins University (JHU).
So far, 3,713,024,686 vaccine doses have been administered across the globe.
Read:Americas account for 40% global Covid deaths, 25% cases: WHO
The US, which is the world's worst-hit country in terms of both cases and deaths, has so far logged 34,226,776 cases. Besides, 609,861 people have lost their lives in the US to date, as per the JHU data.
Brazil has registered 1,424 more Covid-19 deaths in the past 24 hours, raising its national death toll to 544,180, the health ministry said Tuesday.
As many as 27,592 new cases were detected during the period, taking the total caseload to 19,419,437, the ministry said.
Brazil currently has the world's second-highest pandemic death toll after the United States, and the third-largest caseload after the United States and India.
The third worst-hit country, India's Covid-19 tally rose to 31,216,337 on Wednesday as 42,015 new cases were registered during the past 24 hours across the country, as per the federal health ministry's corona data.
Besides, as many as 3,998 deaths due to the pandemic since Tuesday morning took the total death toll to 418,480.
According to AP, India’s excess deaths during the pandemic could be a staggering 10 times the official Covid-19 toll, likely making it modern India’s worst human tragedy, according to the most comprehensive research yet on the ravages of the virus in the South Asian country.
Read: India's deaths during pandemic 10X official toll
The report released Tuesday estimated excess deaths — the gap between those recorded and those that would have been expected — to be 3 million to 4.7 million between January 2020 and June 2021. It said an accurate figure may “prove elusive” but the true death toll “is likely to be an order of magnitude greater than the official count.”
The report was published by Arvind Subramanian, the Indian government’s former chief economic adviser, and two other researchers at the Center for Global Development, a nonprofit thinktank based in Washington, and Harvard University.
Situation in Bangladesh
Marking another grim Eid under the shadow of the pandemic and amid growing concerns about the highly infectious delta variant, Bangladesh saw 173 more Covid-19 deaths Wednesday.
Also, Covid-19 infections in Bangladesh have reached 97% of the peak, with 11,533 new cases reported on an average each day. The highest daily average was recorded on July 15.
The country recorded 7,614 new infections in 24 hours till Wednesday morning after testing 24,979 samples.
Bangladesh reported its highest daily Covid-19 fatality number – 231 – on July 19 and 13,768 infections on the 12th of the month. Wednesday's death counts are the lowest in 14 days and the cases lowest in 18 days.
The country is in the grip of a second wave of the virus that is threatening to overwhelm its health service. There have been 1,136,503 infections and 18,498 coronavirus-related deaths in Bangladesh since the pandemic began, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
Read: Bangladesh sees 173 more Covid deaths as pandemic eclipses Eid celebrations
Meanwhile, the daily test positivity rate rose to 30.48% from Tuesday's 29.31%.
As the death rate stood at 1.63%, Dhaka division reported the highest 58 deaths, Khulna 38, Chattogram 32, Rangpur 16, Rajshahi 11, Barishal eight, Sylhet six, and Mymensingh four.
However, the recovery rate increased to 84.56%.
Challenges remain despite Europe meeting 70 pct vaccine delivery goal
Gaps in vaccine coverage remain across the European continent although the European Union (EU) said over a week ago that it had hit the target of delivering enough COVID-19 vaccines to cover 70 percent of the bloc's adult population.
Meanwhile, the Delta variant is rapidly becoming the predominant strain as it is up to 60 percent more transmissible than the Alpha variant first discovered in Britain last September, according to the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC).
Read: Europe in vaccination race against COVID-19′s delta variant
According to data released by the EU health watchdog on Friday, the number of reported infections has increased by 64 percent over the previous seven-day period -- a trend seen in 20 countries.
According to the ECDC data released on Monday, the number of new cases of the Saturday-Sunday period increased to more than 23,000 in France, compared with fewer than 9,000 over the same period a week earlier, corresponding to a 162-percent increase. Meanwhile, the number of new cases increased by 124 percent in Italy, 72 percent in Germany and 337 percent in Austria.
DELIVERY GOAL REACHED
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen tweeted "Target achieved!" on July 10, by which the bloc had reached its goal of delivering enough coronavirus vaccines to fully vaccinate at least 70 percent of its adult population.
While more than 242 million EU adults had received their first dose and nearly 182 million were fully vaccinated by Sunday, the population in some countries on the eastern fringe of Europe had been less eager to roll up their sleeves for a jab.
Less than 18 percent of all adults in Bulgaria had received their first dose, while 16.1 percent were fully vaccinated, said the ECDC, even though the EU had distributed to the country more than 82 doses per 100 inhabitants to the country.
Read: Immunized but banned: EU says not all COVID vaccines equal
In Romania, nearly 31 percent of the population had received the first dose and 30 percent were fully vaccinated. Despite brighter situations reported in Latvia, Slovakia, Croatia, and Slovenia, vaccination rates were still far behind the 70-percent target.
"Circulation among a large unvaccinated population can lead to a high number of cases, and the more cases there are, the more opportunities the virus has to mutate," Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO's regional director for Europe, told Xinhua.
Meanwhile, more than 80 percent of adults in Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Malta had received their first dose, and more than half of the target population were fully vaccinated.
Besides the EU, the ECDC also lists vaccine uptake in the European Economic Area -- Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein, where 70 percent of the population having received at least the first dose.
Iceland has administered the first dose to 90 percent of all adults and nearly as many have been fully vaccinated. The country, with a population of only around 360,000, was also quick to vaccinate those aged 80 and above, reaching 98 percent already by the end of March.
DELTA WARNING
Despite von der Leyen's tweet, there are concerns that what has been achieved so far will not be enough. In June, the ECDC warned that the number of COVID-19 patients in hospitals and the number of fatalities may within months reach levels similar to those in last autumn amid the rapid spreading of the Delta variant across Europe.
According to data released by the ECDC on Friday, there had been a 64-percent increase of weekly COVID-19 cases over the previous seven days.
An increasing trend was observed in 20 of the 30 countries in the EU/EEA area with the steepest weekly increases observed in Malta, the Netherlands, Slovakia, Lithuania, Greece, and France. In the most affected countries, the steepest increases were reported among 15 to 24-year-olds. "The current continuing deterioration of the epidemiological situation in many countries is expected to continue given the rapid increase in the Delta variant," the ECDC said in a press release.
Concerned by the rapid spread of the Delta variant, the ECDC warned in June that intensive care units could be running at full capacity again before the end of summer unless the pace of vaccinations sped up.
"It is very important to progress with the vaccine roll-out at a very high pace," the ECDC's Director Andrea Ammon said in June.
"At this stage it becomes crucial that the second vaccination dose is administered within the minimum authorized interval from the first dose, to speed up the rate at which vulnerable individuals become protected. I am aware that it requires a significant effort from public health authorities and society at large to achieve this goal. But now is the time to walk the extra mile. We have several safe and effective vaccines available and every single infection prevented now through our compliance with public health measures, is a life that can be saved by vaccination," she said.
However, recent data from other parts of the world suggests that the efficacy of vaccines may not be as high against the Delta variant as it was against previous strains.
An Israeli study released earlier this month suggested that the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine may be considerably less effective (64 percent protective) against the Delta variant compared to other strains, for example the less transmissible Alpha variant (more than 95 percent protective).
The majority of the doses used in the EU, up to date 335 million, were produced by Pfizer-BioNTech, while 88 million doses were from AstraZeneca, according to rollout data from the ECDC.
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) lists another two vaccines as authorized for use in the EU, namely those made by Moderna and Johnson & Johnson. Another four vaccines, including one manufactured by China's Sinovac, are under rolling review by the EMA.
CHALLENGES AHEAD
Besides improved vaccine uptake and adherence to non-pharmaceutical measures such as social distancing and face masks, the ECDC said that the second dose must be administered as soon as possible, as evidence shows that a single dose is not sufficient to protect against the Delta variant.
Several European countries have therefore started to use different vaccines for the second dose from the ones used for the first dose.
"Currently, EMA and ECDC are not in a position to make any definitive recommendations on use of different COVID-19 vaccines for the two doses. Nonetheless, preliminary results from studies in Spain, Germany and the UK suggest a satisfactory immune response and no safety concerns," the ECDC said in a press release on July 14.
While the Delta variant is rapidly becoming the predominant strain in Europe, there are also several other strains that are at play. After all, the so-called Alpha variant quickly became the predominant strain only to be overtaken by Delta variant months later.
The Lambda variant, first discovered in Peru, was upgraded by the WHO on June 14 as a Variant of Interest under its close monitor. The strain, which has so far been identified in over 29 countries, has become the predominant strain in Peru, where 81 percent of COVID-19 cases since April 2021 were associated with this variant, said authorities.
"We need to stop all variants, not just the Delta variant. A key part of WHO's strategy is the suppression of transmission and the way to stop the spread of variants is to reduce the amount of transmission to such a low level that it can be managed by the surveillance that is in place," Kluge told Xinhua.
"That is within our reach with the vaccines we have at our disposal, if they are used appropriately," Kluge said, adding this could, however, not be achieved by vaccines alone.
Global Covid cases top 190 million
The global Covid-19 caseload has surpassed 190 million as the 2nd wave of coornavirus continues its onslaught across the world amid speeding inoculation effort.
The total caseload and fatalities from the virus stand at 190,370,346 and 4,088,328, respectively as of Monday morning, according to Johns Hopkins University (JHU).
On the other hand, as many as 3,619,944,135 vaccine doses have so far been administered across the world.
Read: Covid kills 225 more in Bangladesh as cases cross 1.1 million-mark
The US has logged 34,079,336 cases and 609,018 fatalities to date, the highest death toll in the world, according to the university.
Brazil registered 948 more Covid-19 deaths in the past 24 hours, raising its national death toll to 542,214, the Ministry of Health reported on Sunday.
The ministry stated that another 34,126 cases were also registered, taking the total caseload to 19,376,574.
The moving average for daily deaths over the last seven days fell to 1,247, the lowest level since March, before the start of the second wave of infections in the country.
India’s Covid-19 tally rose to 31,106,065 on Sunday as 41,157 new cases were registered during the past 24 hours , showed the federal health ministry's latest data.
Read:France: Thousands protest against vaccination, COVID passes
Besides, 518 deaths from the pandemic were also reported since Saturday morning, taking the total death toll to 413,609.
Situation in Bangladesh
With Covid’s Delta variant spreading fast, Bangladesh is now facing the worst scenario as the caseload crossed 1.1 million-mark in the country on Sunday.
The country also recorded 225 fresh deaths in 24 hours till Sunday morning.
The total caseload from Covid now stands at 1,103,989 while 11,578 fresh cases were reported during the 24-hour period, according to a handout issued by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
The new numbers pushed the country’s death tally to 17,894.
Read: Little new evidence emerges in US probe of Covid-19 origins
The fresh cases were reported after testing 39, 806 samples which took the case positivity rate to 29.09% from Saturday’s 29.06%, said the DGHS.
Meanwhile, the country’s case fatality rose to 1.62% from Saturday’s 1.61%.
So far, 932,008 people have recovered from the disease taking the recovery rate to 84.42%.
Global Covid cases approach 190 million
The global Covid-19 caseload is fast nearing the grim milestone of 190 million as the highly contagious Delta variant is spreading rapidly in different countries amid vaccination drives.
The total caseload and fatalities stand at 189,924,297 and 4,081,535 respectively as of Sunday morning, according to Johns Hopkins University (JHU).
Read:France: Thousands protest against vaccination, COVID passes
So far, 3,596,183,765 vaccine doses have been administered across the globe.
The US, which is the world's worst-hit country in terms of both cases and deaths, has so far logged 34,067,424 cases. Besides, 608,881 people have lost their lives in the US to date.
Brazil registered 868 more COVID-19 deaths in the past 24 hours, raising its national death toll to 541,266, the health ministry said Saturday.
As many as 34,339 new cases were detected, taking the total caseload to 19,342,448, the ministry said.
Brazil currently has the world's second-highest pandemic death toll after the United States, and the third-largest caseload, after the United States and India.
The third worst-hit country, India's COVID-19 tally rose to 31,064,908 on Saturday, as 38,079 new cases were registered during the past 24 hours across the country, according to the federal health ministry's latest data.
Read: Little new evidence emerges in US probe of Covid-19 origins
Besides, 560 deaths due to the pandemic have been reported since Friday morning, took the total death toll to 413,091.
Overall, the number of confirmed coronavirus infections worldwide over the past seven days has increased by 3.5 mln. The world documented 0.5 mln more infections than a week before, according to TASS’ calculations.
Situation in Bangladesh
As Bangladesh continues to struggle with the deadlier 2nd wave of Covid-19 , the country lost 204 more lives in 24 hours till Saturday morning, setting off growing concern among people.
The virus also infected 8,489 others during the period.
The new figures took the death tally to 17,669 and caseload to 10,92,411, according to a handout issued by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
Read: It was premature to rule out Covid lab leak: WHO
The fresh cases were detected after testing 29,214 samples during the period which took the positivity rate to 29.06% from Friday’s 28.96%.
However, the fatality rate remained unchanged at 1.61% during the period.
France: Thousands protest against vaccination, COVID passes
Over 100,000 people protested across France on Saturday against the government’s latest measures to push people to get vaccinated and curb rising infections by the delta variant of the coronavirus.
In Paris, separate protest marches by the far-right and the far-left wound through different parts of the city. Demonstrations were also held in Strasbourg in the east, Lille in the north, Montpellier in the south and elsewhere.
Thousands of people answered calls to take to the streets by Florian Philippot, a fringe far-right politician and former right hand of Marine Le Pen who announced earlier this month that he would run in the 2022 presidential election. Gathered a stone’s throw away from the Louvre Museum, protesters chanted “Macron, clear off!”, “Freedom,” and banged metal spoons on saucepans.
Read:Deadly flooding, heatwaves in Europe, highlight urgency of climate action: WMO
While Philippot has organized small but regular protests against the government’s handling of the coronavirus crisis, Saturday’s demonstration drew a larger and more diverse crowd of people broadly disaffected with politics: yellow vest activists angry over perceived economic injustice, far-right supporters, medical staff and royalists.
They denounced the government’s decision on Monday to make vaccines compulsory for all health care workers, and to require a “health pass” proving people are fully vaccinated, have recently tested negative or recovered from the virus in order to access restaurants and other public venues. President Emmanuel Macron’s government is presenting a draft law Monday to enshrine the measures.
“I will never get vaccinated,” Bruno Auquier, a 53-year-old town councilor who lives on the outskirts of Paris. “People need to wake up,” he said, questioning the safety of the vaccine.
While France already requires several vaccinations to enter public school, Auquier pledged to take his two children out of school if the coronavirus vaccine became mandatory. “These new measures are the last straw,” Auquier said.
The government warned of the continued spread of the delta variant, which authorities fear could again put pressure on hospitals if not enough people are vaccinated against the virus. The pandemic has cost France more than 111,000 lives and deeply damaged the economy.
During a visit to a pop-up vaccination center in the southwest, Prime Minister Jean Castex exhorted the French to stick together in order to overcome the crisis.
“There is only one solution: vaccination,” he said, stressing it “protects us, and will make us freer.”
At the Paris protest, a manual worker in his sixties expressed bitterness about jobs in his sector sent offshore. A 24-year-old royalist said he was there to demand “the return of God and the King.”
Read:Europe floods shows need to curb emissions, adapt
Lucien, a 28-year-old retail shop manager, said he wasn’t anti-vaccine, but thought that everyone should be able to do as they please with their own body. “The government is going too far,” he said. His 26-year-old friend Elise said, “I am vaccinated against diphtheria, tetanus, and polio. But the COVID vaccine is just too experimental.”
While a majority of French health care workers have had at least one vaccine dose, some are resisting the government’s decision to make vaccination compulsory for all staff in medical facilities.
At Saturday’s Paris protest, a 39-year-old green party supporter and hospital laboratory worker said she might resort to buying a fake vaccination certificate to avoid losing her job. A health care worker dressed as the Statue of Liberty called it “act of violence” to force people to get vaccinated.
In Montpellier, more than 1,000 people marched to the train station, chanting “Liberty!” and carrying signs reading “Our kids aren’t Guinea pigs.” Security officials closed the main entrance to travelers and a dozen police officers took posts in front.
The Interior Ministry said 114,000 people took part in protests nationwide.
Overnight on Friday, vandals ransacked a vaccination center in the southeast. Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin asked prefects and police chiefs to reinforce security for elected officials, after several complained they had received threats in recent days over the latest anti-COVID measures.
Vaccine hesitancy is considered widespread in France, though appears to have faded somewhat as 36 million French people have gotten coronavirus vaccine doses in recent months. Millions more have gotten injected or signed up for vaccinations since Monday’s announcement.
Read:Rescuers race to prevent more deaths from European floods
French health care workers have until Sept. 15 to get vaccinated. The requirement for COVID passes for all restaurants, bars, hospitals, shopping malls, trains, planes and other venues is being introduced in stages starting Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the French government announced tightened border controls starting Sunday, but also said it would allow in travelers from anywhere in the world who have been fully vaccinated.
That now includes people who received AstraZeneca’s Indian-manufactured vaccine. The move came after a global outcry over the fact that the European Union’s COVID-19 certificate only recognizes AstraZeneca vaccines manufactured in Europe.
Malaysia shuts vaccination center after 204 staff infected
Malaysia shut down a mass vaccination center in its worst-hit state Tuesday after more than 200 medical staff and volunteers tested positive for the coronavirus.
The closure was the first of a vaccination center and came as the country’s new confirmed infections breached five figures Tuesday, hitting a record 11,079.
Science Minister Khairy Jamaluddin stressed that swift government action had contained the cluster at the Ideal Convention Center in central Selangor state.
Khairy, who is in charge of the national immunization program, said he ordered the testing of all 453 workers at the center after two volunteers were confirmed to have the virus. Khairy said the 204 whose results were positive had low viral loads, meaning the amount of virus in their bodies was small.
Read:Immunized but banned: EU says not all COVID vaccines equal
This could be because 88% or 400 of the workers have already been vaccinated, he said.
The center was shut for deep sanitization and all its workers are being isolated. Khairy said it will reopen Wednesday with a new team of medical workers.
He urged people who were vaccinated at the center since Friday to isolate themselves for 10 days and be tested if they develop symptoms. He declined to say how many people had visited the center since Friday. It has the capacity to deliver up to 6,000 shots a day.
“This is the first time we had to shut down a (vaccination center) because of positive cases but we acted fast. By shutting it down today and by taking corrective measures ... we hope the disruption is only one day and that this will not hamper the vaccination process,” Khairy said.
Read: FDA adds warning about rare reaction to J&J COVID-19 vaccine
He said it would be safe to visit the center starting Wednesday for vaccinations.
Khairy said health measures at all other vaccination centers will be tightened, but didn’t order other workers to be tested.
Selangor, the country’s richest state bordering Kuala Lumpur, is the worst hit by the pandemic. It accounted for nearly half of Tuesday’s new cases, partly because of increased virus screening amid a tight lockdown.
The government has struggled to contain the pandemic, which has worsened despite a lockdown since June 1. Total confirmed cases have soared by 50% since June 1 to 855,949, while deaths have more than doubled to over 6,200.
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Hospitals especially in Selangor have been overwhelmed, with some patients reportedly being treated on the floor due to a lack of beds, and corpses piling up in mortuaries.
Vaccinations have picked up, with 11% of the population now fully inoculated. At least a quarter of the country’s 32 million people have received at least one dose of vaccine.
The daily vaccination rate surpassed 420,000 doses on Monday, the national Bernama news agency quoted Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin as saying,
He expressed confidence that the fast pace of vaccination would help stem the outbreak.