France has recorded more than 5,000 cases of coronavirus in 24 hours and since Wednesday evening, wearing a mask is mandatory in Marseille. Thursday morning, the Prime Minister and the Ministers of National Education and Health will speak to take stock of the epidemic. Follow the evolution of the situation live. 

LIVE

A few days before the start of the school year, the Covid-19 continues to worry in France. According to data from Public Health France, more than 5,000 new cases of coronavirus have been recorded in 24 hours in France. After having called for "the spirit of responsibility" on the wearing of the mask and having announced that the presentation of the recovery plan would take place on September 3, Wednesday, Jean Castex will speak again Thursday morning, this time accompanied by the Minister of Health Olivier Véran and the Minister of National Education Jean-Michel Blanquer.

Globally, more than 463 million children have been deprived of any education because of the health crisis, according to a UN report. More than 820,000 people have died since the start of the crisis. Follow the evolution of the situation live.

Main information to remember: 

  • Jean-Michel Blanquer, Olivier Véran and Jean Castex speak Thursday morning
  • On Wednesday, the Prime Minister called for "a spirit of responsibility" on the wearing of the mask and specified that the recovery plan would be presented on September 3
  • 463 million children have been deprived of any education because of the health crisis, according to the UN
  • More than 5,000 new cases were recorded in France in 24 hours

Castex, Véran and Blanquer speak Thursday morning

Prime Minister Jean Castex is due to hold a press conference on Thursday morning about the resumption of the Covid-19 epidemic and a few days before the start of the school year. The head of government will be surrounded by the ministers of Health, Olivier Véran, and of National Education, Jean-Michel Blanquer, for this exercise which must begin with a presentation before questions and answers with journalists, on the model of the format adopted by his predecessor, Edouard Philippe, in April and May. The press conference is due to take place Thursday at 10:30 am at the Hôtel de Matignon.

Since Wednesday evening, the Marseillais must get used to wearing a mask 

In France, the scene of an increase in contamination (more than 5,000 in 24 hours, a record since the end of confinement in May), a strengthening of measures against the Covid has been decided in Marseille, the second most populous city in the 'Hexagon. Wearing a mask has been compulsory since Wednesday evening and bars and restaurants must close at 11 p.m. throughout the Bouches-du-Rhône department, of which this agglomeration is the capital. As for Paris, where wearing a mask is compulsory but only in certain neighborhoods, it has been added by Belgium to its list of European destinations that are no longer authorized, unless it submits to the return to a screening for the coronavirus and to a period of isolation. On Wednesday, French Prime Minister Jean Castex called on the French "in the spirit of responsibility" to wear the protective mask.

Partial unemployment, recovery plan: Jean Castex details the back-to-school program

At the microphone of France Inter on Wednesday morning and then invited to the Medef summer university in the afternoon, Jean Castex returned at length to the situation of the health crisis. "It will no longer be possible for the prefectural authority to derogate" from the maximum level of 5,000 people "in the red departments, that is to say where there is a strong viral circulation", he announced , while specifying that the presentation of the recovery plan, initially scheduled for Tuesday, August 25, would take place on Thursday, September 3. On the employment side, partial unemployment will be maintained until November 1. "The concern to ensure continued employment in companies has been privileged since the start of the pandemic," said Jean Castex.

CORONAVIRUS ESSENTIALS

> Covid-19: why the increase in the number of cases is greater than that of hospitalizations

> INVESTIGATION - Coronavirus: towards a new shortage of masks and gloves?

> Faced with the rebound of the Covid-19 epidemic, screening centers are overwhelmed

> Holidays: should grandparents worry about looking after their grandchildren?

> Coronavirus: the 5 mistakes not to make with your mask

463 million children deprived of any education, according to the UN

According to a Unicef ​​report published on Wednesday, the Covid-19 pandemic and the closure of schools have meant that at least a third of students around the world, or 463 million children, have been unable to benefit from a teaching, for lack of being able to do it virtually. "The large number of children whose education has been completely interrupted for months is a global educational emergency", warns in a statement the director of the UN Children's Fund, Henrietta Fore.

As several countries prepare for a new start, Unicef ​​"urges governments to prioritize the safe reopening of schools when they begin to ease restrictions." When reopening is not possible, the authorities must provide specific training for the time that has been lost in teaching, also claims the organization in its statement.

In the United States, tests now deemed more necessary for asymptomatic

In the United States, health authorities have quietly changed their guidelines and now discourage Covid-19 screening for people without symptoms. Until now, they were invited to be tested if they had been in contact with a patient. This is no longer the case today. "If you have been in contact (within 1.8 meters) with a person infected with Covid-19 for at least 15 minutes but are not showing symptoms, you do not necessarily need a test" , unless you are a vulnerable person, now says the site of the authorities. Many experts reacted with amazement to this latest change.

>> PODCAST - Coronavirus: find all the answers to your questions here

Resignation of a European commissioner, swept away by a scandal linked to the coronavirus

Hard blow for the European Commission: the European Commissioner for Trade, the Irish Phil Hogan, had to resign Wednesday evening. His participation in a gala dinner in Ireland attended by more than 80 people, in violation of health restrictions, caused a storm, prompting him to apologize "without reservation", before eventually throwing in the towel. This vacancy in a key Commission post comes at the worst time, when the EU's trade relations with the United States, but also with China, are particularly strained. 

Greater immunity for women?

Meanwhile, studies on Covid-19 continue. One of them, published Wednesday, concludes that the immune response of women could be stronger than that of men, more affected by severe forms. In addition, according to another study by the British Ministry of Defense, a product against mosquitoes, the active substance of which comes from eucalyptus, has been shown to be effective in neutralizing the new coronavirus.

More than 820,000 dead worldwide

The global death toll established by AFP from official sources now stands at more than 820,000 deaths since the end of December. Almost 24 million cases have been recorded in total. In Argentina, a record of 10,000 new cases detected in 24 hours was reached on Wednesday in the country, which has nearly 8,000 deaths. The United States is the most bereaved country with 179,596 dead, and has more than a fifth of the world's cases, at 5.8 million. Brazil follows with 117,665 deaths, for 3.7 million cases.