More than 60 million cases of contamination have been officially diagnosed worldwide since the start of the pandemic and at least 1.4 million people have died from it, according to a count made Thursday by Agence France-Presse (AFP) in based on reports provided by the authorities.
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More than a million people infected in Germany
Considered one of the good European students of the management of the epidemic but hit hard by the second wave, Germany had more than one million people tested positive for Covid-19 on Friday since the start of the pandemic and more of 15,000 deaths from the disease, announced the Robert Koch health watch institute. The state-region of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous in Germany, leads the most affected Länder with more than 250,000 cases, ahead of Bavaria, with nearly 198,000 people infected, and Baden-Baden. Württemberg (nearly 143,000). In Berlin, nearly 62,000 cases have been identified since the start of the coronavirus epidemic.
Germany will extend until early January its restrictions to fight Covid-19, including the closure of bars and restaurants and the limitations of participants in private meetings, Angela Merkel announced Wednesday evening. “We still have to make efforts (…) the number of daily infections is still at a much too high level ”, said the Chancellor after more than seven hours of discussions with the leaders of the 16 German regional states. Bars, restaurants, cultural venues and sports clubs should therefore remain closed for more than a month. Ski resorts will remain closed and access to shops will also be restricted, with a limited number of customers depending on their size.
London asks its health regulator to review AstraZeneca vaccine
The British government announced Thursday that it has asked the Medicines Health Regulatory Authority (MHRA) to review the vaccine against the new coronavirus developed by the British laboratory AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford, for commercialization . “We have officially asked the health regulator to assess the Oxford / AstraZeneca vaccine and determine if it meets rigorous safety standards”Health Minister Matt Hancock said in a statement. If approved, this will constitute a “Important step towards the deployment of a vaccine as quickly as possible”, he added.
In the United States, a high risk Thanksgiving
A virtual parade and calls for limited gatherings, Americans on Thursday celebrated a Thanksgiving tarnished by the new outbreak of the epidemic in the country. Health crisis requires, the famous Thanksgiving parade with giant balloons which usually brings together millions of people in the streets of New York, was held without an audience. It aired online, with much of the animation filmed in advance.
Following, like many of his compatriots, the recommendations of the health authorities, President-elect Joe Biden did not come but he spent this family celebration in his stronghold of Delaware (northeast) in a small committee with his wife, his daughter and his son-in-law. “I know that’s not how many of us hoped to spend the holidays., underlined the former vice-president of Barack Obama in a video posted Thursday on Twitter. It is a personal sacrifice that every family can and should make to save someone else’s life. It is a sacrifice for the whole country. ” The former vice-president, however, sought to reassure his fellow citizens. “We’re going to get out of this together, even if we have to be apart”, he added in a column published by CNN.
Conversely, President Donald Trump encouraged on Wednesday “All Americans to come together, in their homes and in places of worship” during his Thanksgiving proclamation. The Republican billionaire, who spent his Thursday morning golfing, is expected to join the Trump family for a White House dinner, according to the First Lady’s spokeswoman.
Faced with these contradictory injunctions, nearly seven million people have still flown in the United States over the last seven days, according to data from the TSA agency, in charge of security checks at airports, an increase of 22% compared to the previous week. But the family reunion, around the traditional stuffed turkey, will not have the same flavor this year as the country recorded more than 2,400 deaths from the coronavirus on Wednesday in 24 hours, a six-month high. Thursday, the death toll stood at more than 1,300 additional deaths. The most bereaved country in the world by the disease, with more than 263,000 dead since its onset, the United States could see the number of deaths increase to reach 321,000 by December 19, according to the latest projection of the Centers of Disease Prevention and Control (CDC).
Negative test to enter Colombia
Colombian justice has ordered the government to reinstate the obligation to present a negative test for the coronavirus for entry into the country, a measure that had been withdrawn in early November, drawing criticism from the medical sector.
Africa far from ready to vaccinate
The African continent is “far from ready” for mass vaccination, WHO said Thursday, estimating in a statement barely 33% ready and urging it to intensify its preparations. The main shortcomings relate to the lack of funding, measurement instruments and communication with the populations, and to remedy them “International solidarity will be imperative”, she said. WHO estimates the cost of immunizing priority populations in Africa alone at around 4.8 billion euros.
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