Case explosion in Belgium

With 8,000 new infections per day on average, Belgium is back to a rate of spread of the virus that had not been reached for a year.

Hospitalizations follow the same trend: there are 2,000 Covid patients in Belgian hospitals, a level that the country has not seen since May.

The Belgian authorities therefore once again strongly encourage teleworking and the wearing of masks in all public spaces.

Germany: Pfizer for those under 30

The German Vaccine Commission (STIKO) recommended on Wednesday to vaccinate those under 30 with the only vaccine from Pfizer-BioNTech, facing the risk of myocarditis for this population caused by Moderna.

This recommendation also applies to pregnant women.

People wait to be vaccinated against Covid-19 on November 9, 2021 in Suttgart, Germany THOMAS KIENZLE AFP

- European contract for Valneva -

The Franco-Austrian laboratory Valneva and the European Commission announced on Wednesday that they had reached an agreement for up to 60 million doses of vaccine against Covid-19 by 2023.

The Franco-Austrian laboratory Valneva and the European Commission announced on Wednesday that they had reached an agreement for up to 60 million doses of vaccine against Covid-19 by 2023 JEAN-FRANCOIS MONIER AFP / Archives

Shanghai Marathon postponed

The Shanghai marathon, scheduled for November 28, has been postponed, as have those in Beijing and Wuhan last month, due to a limited upturn in the Covid-19 epidemic in China, its organizers announced.

The number of contaminations in the country remains low - 74 cases on average over the last seven days according to official figures - but the Chinese authorities are following a policy of zero contamination within three months of the opening of the Winter Olympics in Beijing (February 4-20).

Participants in the Shanghai Marathon in November 2020 STR AFP / Archives

Rally without distancing: three arrests in China

Chinese police have ordered the pre-trial detention of three people, presented as the organizers of a giant-screen broadcast of the League of Legends global video game final, the official press reported.

The esports competition, held Saturday in Reykjavik (Iceland), was broadcast in a crowded district of Wuhan (center), attracting at least 2,000 people according to Chinese media.

This massive rally had been organized without authorization and without distancing.

Lions test positive in Singapore

Four lions from a Singapore wildlife park have tested positive for coronavirus after being infected by staff and have symptoms like coughing and sneezing, authorities said on Wednesday.

The Southeast Asian city-state is facing its worst wave of contamination since the start of the pandemic with some 2,000 to 3,000 new cases per day and a few deaths.

People in front of a Covid-19 vaccination center, October 7, 2021 in Singapore Roslan Rahman AFP / Archives

Over five million dead

The pandemic has killed more than 5,062,911 people worldwide since the end of December 2019, according to a report established by AFP on Wednesday at 11:00 GMT.

The United States is the country with the most deaths (757,409), ahead of Brazil (609,756), India (461,849), Mexico (290,110) and Russia (250,454).

Covid-19: AFP global report

The WHO estimates, taking into account the excess mortality directly and indirectly linked to Covid-19, that the toll of the pandemic could be two to three times higher than that which is officially established.

burx-paj / mw / cco

© 2021 AFP