A small city on the outskirts of
Houston, Texas instituted a curfew from Saturday night due to
surging coronavirus cases, the latest move by officials in some
southern and western US states to backtrack on their reopening
plans.
DEATHS AND INFECTIONS
* More than 9.86 million people have been reported to be
infected by the novel coronavirus globally and 494,351 have
died, a Reuters tally showed as of 1600 GMT on Saturday.
EUROPE
* Britain will scrap a 14-day quarantine period for people
arriving from countries it deems to be lower risk for COVID-19,
and official advice against all but essential travel abroad will
also be eased for some countries and regions, the government
said on Friday. The changes will make it easier for Britons to
travel abroad for summer holidays.
* Liverpool have condemned the behaviour of fans who
gathered in Liverpool city centre for a second night on Friday
to celebrate their team's Premier League title win and urged
them to stay at home due to fears of a surge in Covid-19
cases.
* The Czech Republic recorded 168 new cases of the
coronavirus on Friday, authorities said, the highest daily rise
in cases since early April just as the country is starting the
two-month summer holiday season.
AMERICAS
* The pandemic has forced organizers to move parades,
marches and forums online across the United States in June for
Pride Month, an annual celebration of the LGBTQ community and a
renewed call for equal rights. Still, "canceling" Pride was not
an option, said Cathy Renna, director of communications at the
National LGBTQ Task Force.
* Peru will lift lockdown measures in most areas of the
country, including the capital Lima, at the start of July, while
keeping its borders closed, after the daily rate of cases slowed
in recent days, the government said late on Friday.
ASIA-PACIFIC
* India reported over 17,000 new coronavirus cases over the
last 24 hours, pushing the country's total above 500,000,
federal health ministry data showed on Saturday, with infections
surging in major cities including the capital New
Delhi.
* Australia's state of Victoria recorded 41 new confirmed
coronavirus cases on Saturday, double the daily rate seen a week
ago, struggling to gain control over the pandemic while the rest
of the country continues easing restrictions.
* Indonesia reported its biggest daily increase in
coronavirus infections with 1,385 new cases, taking the total to
52,812, health ministry official Achmad Yurianto said.
MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
* Tunisia reopened its land, sea and air borders for the
first time in more than three months on Saturday after it
announced it had brought the coronavirus outbreak under
control.
* Guinea Bissau was warned on Saturday to prepare for a
possible increase in coronavirus cases by the head of its
response commission, as a team of Cuban health workers arrived
to help the nation tackle the pandemic.
MEDICAL DEVELOPMENTS
* Brazil announced on Saturday it had signed a $127 million
agreement to start producing locally an experimental vaccine
developed by AstraZeneca that has shown promise to fight
the pandemic.
ECONOMIC FALLOUT
* Delta Air Lines said late on Friday it will soon
send warning notices to about 2,500 pilots regarding possible
furloughs at the airline, as the industry takes a huge blow
after the pandemic slashed air travel demand.
* Walt Disney Co postponed the debut of live-action
movie "Mulan" until August 21, the company said in a statement on
Friday, a blow to theater operators who want blockbuster movies
to draw audiences from their homes.