New restrictions to stop the pandemic when the world registers 650 thousand deaths | International

Authorities re-imposed restrictions in several countries to contain the coronavirus, when the official death toll from the pandemic exceeded 650,000 worldwide, and large-scale clinical trials for a vaccine began in the United States.

In Washington DC, where the White House announced that another senior adviser to President Donald Trump has been infected, Mayor Muriel Bowser ordered that people visiting the federal district from 27 states of the country with high prevalence of covid-19 will have to isolate yourself for two weeks, a discouraging sign for domestic tourism.

Spain, which hoped to save its summer season by promoting itself as a safe destination, received a cold water bucket with the decision of the United Kingdom to reintroduce quarantine for travelers returning from that country due to the increase in cases there.

Germany said it will make coronavirus testing mandatory for travelers returning from risky areas.

Belgium, which has the highest mortality rate in the world and last week had a 70% increase in cases, announced that as of Wednesday the population will be able to see a maximum of five people outside their family circle, reducing the “bubble social ”allowed from 15.

And France ordered nocturnal curfews for the beaches of Quiberon, on the Atlantic coast, after the focus emerged in that resort.

China, where the new coronavirus was first reported late last year, reported its highest number of cases in three months, while Hong Kong, shaken by a wave of infections, mandated the use of facemasks in public.

Iran, the most affected country in the Middle East, has warned against conducting weddings and funerals, as the coronavirus outbreak does not appear to subside.

In Latin America, the region with the highest number of infections, an angry crowd set fire to the municipal building of an indigenous town in western Guatemala in reaction to an announcement about measures to contain the pandemic.

WHO against border closures

Movement restrictions remain an important part of many countries’ strategy to combat the new coronavirus, but the World Health Organization (WHO) said it is unfeasible to keep borders closed.

“Economies must reopen, people must work, trade must resume”said Michael Ryan, WHO’s director of emergencies, although he admitted that each state must take into account the risks it faces.

Maria Van Kerkhove, an epidemiologist at the WHO, said that more than drastic measures, people must adapt to a “new normal” of physical distancing from others and masks.

The virus has killed a total of 652,048 people and infected 16.4 million, according to an AFP count compiled from official sources.

The United States is the country with the highest number of fatalities (more than 147,500), followed by Brazil (87,004), the United Kingdom (45,752), Mexico (43,680) and Italy (35,112).

“American Scientific Genius”

The President of the United States, Donald Trump, insisted that the solution to the pandemic lies in the rapid discovery of a vaccine and new treatments for the virus, which he now infected with a close adviser of his: National Security Adviser Robert O ‘ Brien.

Far from paralyzing the economy before the presidential elections of November 3, in which he seeks reelection, Trump wants to solve the health crisis thanks to the “American scientific genius”.

Washington has allocated $ 6.3 billion since March to finance vaccine projects, in large laboratories like Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer and AstraZeneca, and in two small biotech companies, Novavax and Moderna.

Founded in 2010, Moderna began the latest testing phase of its vaccine in the United States on Monday, one of only four companies in the world to have reached this stage.

Bolsonaro accused before the CPI

And while Brazil remains the Latin American country most hit by covid-19, Health workers from that country urged the International Criminal Court in The Hague to investigate the government of President Jair Bolsonaro for crimes against humanity for its handling of the pandemic.

The case was brought by a coalition of unions, which claims to represent more than a million Brazilian health workers and accuses the Bolsonaro administration of being “criminally negligent.”

The far-right leader, who compared the virus to a “flu” and attacked the stay-at-home measures imposed by local authorities to contain it, tested positive on July 7, but on Saturday he said he had overcome it.

This Monday in Bolivia, the transitional president of Bolivia, Jeanine Áñez, announced that she was discharged from an asymptomatic picture of coronavirus, so it returns “to normal work”.

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