Paris (AFP)

New measures, new reports and highlights: an update on the latest developments in the Covid-19 pandemic around the world.

- Australia: record number of cases in Sydney -

The Australian state of New South Wales, Australia's most populous, recorded a new record of Covid-19 cases on Saturday, and in Melbourne, authorities are trying to trace the outbreaks.

While Australia's three main cities, Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, are still confined, New South Wales recorded for the third consecutive day a record number of contaminations, with 319 cases and five deaths.

Faced with the surge in contaminations spreading to the suburbs of Sydney, the country's first city to enter its seventh week of containment, New South Wales State Minister of Health Brad Hazzard said his frustration that people ignore the restrictions and called on locals to stay in their homes.

- France: anti-pass and vaccination demonstrations -

Tens of thousands of French people demonstrated on Saturday for the fourth consecutive weekend against a compulsory health pass to go to restaurants or take the train, two days before its entry into force.

The Interior Ministry had identified at least 204,000 demonstrators on July 31.

“We expect the same number of demonstrators globally” Saturday, predicted a police source, rallies being planned in more than 150 cities.

Almost 66% of the population has received at least one dose of the vaccine.

The gatherings take place the day after a new pressing appeal launched by Emmanuel Macron to the French: "Get vaccinated".

The fourth wave of Covid-19 is progressing, particularly striking the south of France, and the islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique (West Indies) where hospitals are saturated.

- India approves single injection Johnson & Johnson -

India has approved the emergency use of the Johnson & Johnson single-injection coronavirus vaccine to speed up its vaccination campaign, fearing a new wave of infections.

Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said the move would bolster the fight against the pandemic in India, where at least 200,000 people died in a brutal wave, which lasted two months until mid-June.

India, a country of 1.3 billion people, has so far injected 500 million doses of the vaccine, but just 8% of the population has received two injections.

burx-ot / acm / mw / mba

© 2021 AFP