World News in Brief: December 7

More than 66.66 million people have been reported to be infected by the novel coronavirus globally and 1,533,752 have died, according to a Reuters tally. Infections have been reported in more than 210 countries and territories since the first cases were identified in China in December 2019.

Medical workers in protective suits take care of a COVID-19 patient at Riga east university hospital in Riga, Latvia, Dec. 4, 2020. (Photo: Xinhua)
Medical workers in protective suits take care of a COVID-19 patient at Riga east university hospital in Riga, Latvia, Dec. 4, 2020. (Photo: Xinhua)

* The COVID-19 cases in Indonesia rose by 5,754 within one day to 581,550, with the death toll adding by 127 to 17,867, the Health Ministry said on Monday. According to the ministry, 4,431 more people were discharged from hospitals, bringing the total number of recovered patients to 479,202. The virus has spread to all the country's 34 provinces.

* The number of COVID-19 infection in the Philippines rose to 441,399 after the Department of Health (DOH) reported 1,574 new cases on Monday. The DOH said 80 more patients recovered, raising the total number of recoveries to 408,702. The death toll climbed to 8,572 after 18 more patients died from the viral disease, according to the DOH.

* India is accelerating its review of coronavirus vaccines developed by Pfizer and AstraZeneca for emergency use, a senior official said.

* Russia has granted approval for clinical trials to be held for Chinese COVID-19 vaccine Ad5-Ncov involving 8,000 volunteers, Interfax reported.

* Millions of vaccine doses could be airlifted to Britain if ports are snarled up because Britain fails to agree a trade deal with the European Union when Brexit's transition period ends, a junior minister said.

* California compelled much of the state to close shop and stay at home on Monday, when some of the harshest coronavirus restrictions in the United States came into effect one day after the state set a record with more than 30,000 new COVID-19 cases.

* Greece said it will not re-open schools, restaurants and courts until Jan. 7, while Hungary will maintain restrictions until Jan. 11 and Denmark's prime minister flagged further measures in parts of the country.

* France's health minister told members of parliament that it is unlikely that the number of daily new coronavirus cases will fall to 5,000 by Dec. 15, BFM TV reported.

* The Kremlin said there was no need to impose lockdown restrictions to curb a sharp rise in cases and that current measures were widely seen by authorities as enough.

* The emergence of Japan's coldest city as a COVID-19 hotspot has raised fears that it could signal what the rest of the nation may face as winter sets in and more people stay indoors, raising transmission risks.

* Republic of Korea President Moon Jae-in called for expanded coronavirus testing and more thorough tracing as the country struggled to control its latest and largest wave of infections.

* In Kenya, the coronavirus is spreading into rural areas with creaky healthcare, where scarce ICU units are full and turning patients away, medics told Reuters.

* Turkey entered its first full weekend lockdown since May as deaths from coronavirus more than doubled in less than three weeks to hit record highs, with daily infections now among the highest numbers recorded globally.

* Sweden's central bank will keep monetary policy expansionary for as long as necessary to fight the economic effects of the pandemic, policy meeting minutes showed.

* Airlines battered by COVID-19 are prepping for key roles in the mass vaccine rollout that promises to unlock an immediate boost for the sector.

* Italy reported 18,887 new COVID-19 cases, bringing its total caseload to 1,728,878, according to the country's health authorities. The health ministry also confirmed 564 new fatalities from the virus over the past day, and Italy's total COVID-19 death toll now stands at 60,078.

* Turkey will not bow to threats in its dispute with Greece and Cyprus over maritime claims in the eastern Mediterranean, President Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday as European Union foreign ministers met in Brussels to discuss the issue. But Erdogan also said Turkey wanted negotiations over the conflicting claims to continental shelves and rights to potential energy resources.

* As many as 9,988 people were evacuated in Aceh province's East Aceh district as a two-meter high flood has hit the area, according to the District Disaster Mitigation Agency.

* At least 24 people were wounded in a car bomb blast outside a district police station in Afghanistan's southern Kandahar province on Monday, causing panic and destruction, local police said. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack yet.

Reuters, Xinhua