World News in Brief: July 8

The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on Wednesday condemned "in the strongest terms" the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise.

Rescuers pause at a memorial wall around the site of the collapsed building after their shift in Miami-Dade County, Florida, the United States, July 7, 2021. The death toll in the partial collapse of a 12-story residential building in Surfside of US state Florida has risen to 54 on Wednesday, Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava told a news conference. The mayor said 86 people remain unaccounted for, and the 14-day search effort would switch from rescue to recovery at midnight after a ceremony and moment of silence for the victims at 7:15 p.m. (2315 GMT). (Photo: Xinhua)
Rescuers pause at a memorial wall around the site of the collapsed building after their shift in Miami-Dade County, Florida, the United States, July 7, 2021. The death toll in the partial collapse of a 12-story residential building in Surfside of US state Florida has risen to 54 on Wednesday, Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava told a news conference. The mayor said 86 people remain unaccounted for, and the 14-day search effort would switch from rescue to recovery at midnight after a ceremony and moment of silence for the victims at 7:15 p.m. (2315 GMT). (Photo: Xinhua)

* As Group of Twenty (G20) finance ministers and central bank governors are set to gather later this week, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Wednesday called for urgent action to address a worsening "two-track" recovery.

* World Health Organization emergencies head Michael Ryan urged countries on Wednesday to use extreme caution when lifting COVID-19 restrictions so as "not to lose the gains you've made".

* The Chinese mainland on Wednesday reported 17 new COVID-19 cases, of which 15 were imported and two were locally transmitted, the National Health Commission said in its daily report on Thursday.

* The highly transmissible Delta variant has overtaken the Alpha variant to become the dominant variant in the United States, according to new estimates from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Delta, which was first found in India and is now in over 100 countries, represented 51.7 percent of new infections in the United States over the two weeks ending on July 3, according to the CDC.

* Brazil registered 1,648 more deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, bringing the national death toll to 528,540, the health ministry said Wednesday. A total of 54,022 new infections were detected, raising the total caseload to 18,909,037, the ministry said.

* Olympic organisers are set to ban all spectators from the Games, the Asahi daily said on Thursday, as Japan prepared to declare a state of emergency for Tokyo that will run through its hosting of the event to curb a new wave of coronavirus infections.

* Thailand Thursday reported a new daily record of 75 deaths from COVID-19, taking the death toll to 2,462 since the pandemic began, with the country mulling new restrictive measures to stem the fast spread of the deadly virus.

* Malaysia's central bank on Thursday maintained its Overnight Policy Rate (OPR) at 1.75 percent.

* COVID-19 infections in England have quadrupled in a month since early June, a large prevalence study showed on Thursday, ahead of Prime Minister Boris Johnson's plan to fully reopen the economy in two weeks' time.

* Britain on Wednesday reported 32,548 cases of COVID-19, the first time the figure has surpassed 30,000 since January.

* Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison has declared that Sydney is at a "critical" point in its coronavirus lockdown.

* The number of coronavirus cases in Germany ticked up again on Wednesday after more than two months of steady decline and most new cases have been of the Delta variant since the end of June.

* The highly contagious Delta variant now represents around 40% of new COVID-19 infections in France and could ruin the summer if a fourth wave of infections is allowed to build, government spokesman Gabriel Attal said.

* The Dutch government said it will consider whether it needs to take fresh action following a swift rise in new COVID-19 cases.

* French Junior European Affairs Minister Clement Beaune advised French people on Thursday to avoid Spain and Portugal for their summer holidays, due to risks tied to the highly contagious COVID-19 Delta variant.

* Fiji reported a record daily increase in infections as it began distributing groceries to some households.

* Russia, Iran and Turkey will continue to cooperate in Syria to decisively defeat Islamic State and other militants, the RIA news agency cited a joint statement by the nations as saying on Thursday.

* The European Parliament on Wednesday adopted a EUR30-billion package to fund transport, digital and energy projects until 2027.

* The New Zealand government released on Thursday the KiwiRail's inaugural Rail Network Investment Program which details renewals and upgrades on the rail network over the next three years, aiming to support economic recovery post COVID-19.

* Italy's parliament voted on Thursday to lower the voting age for elections to the upper house Senate to 18 from 25, bringing it into line with that of the lower house. The new law will come into force at the next national election, which is due by early 2023.

* Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar and his US counterpart Lloyd Austin on Wednesday had a "constructive and positive" phone call on the issue of a plan to run and secure Kabul airport, Turkey's defense ministry said.

* Oil prices fell on Wednesday as major oil-producing countries' failure to reach a deal on production policy stoked concerns over uncertainty.

Xinhua,Reuters