Coronavirus Updates: Australia's State of Victoria Reports 374 New Virus Cases

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The number of people, who were diagnosed with the coronavirus in Colombia, has increased by 6,727 to 204,005 within the past 24 hours, the national Health Ministry said on Monday.

The death toll has risen by 193 to 6,929 people within the same period of time. More than 95,800 people have recovered in Colombia since the start of the outbreak.

Over 100,000 people have been diagnosed with COVID-19 in Colombia since early July, while about 3,500 patients have died of the disease over the given period.

Colombia ranks fifth in terms of the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Latin America, after Brazil, Mexico, Peru and Chile.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Brazil has increased by 20,257 to 2,118,646 within the past 24 hours, the national Ministry of Health said on Monday.

The death toll has risen by 632 to 80,120 people within the same period of time.

A day earlier, Brazil reported about 23,500 new cases of the coronavirus disease and 716 new fatalities. A week ago, Brazil's coronavirus death toll stood at around 73,000, thus the country has seen a weekly rise of about 7,000 coronavirus-related fatalities.

WHO Executive Director Michael Ryan said on 17 July that the coronavirus curve had plateaued in Brazil and that the country, which is only surpassed by the US in terms of total cases and deaths, could now push the disease down.

"Another 17 patients, who were diagnosed with pneumonia and tested positive for the coronavirus infection, died in Moscow", the city's coronavirus response centre said in a statement on Monday.

In the previous day, 15 people infected with the coronavirus died in Moscow.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The global COVID-19 death toll rose by 5,111 to 603,691 and the confirmed case total has risen above 14.3 million after 229,780 new positive tests were reported worldwide over the past 24 hours, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Monday.

According to the organisation's situation report, Americas continue to lead the world in confirmed cases, with a total of 7,584,675. Europe comes second with 3,079,218.

TORONTO (Sputnik) - Newly released data on novel coronavirus cases in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec indicate that the total number of infections for the whole of Canada has surpassed 110,000 cases.

On Tuesday, there were 135 new cases in Ontario and 150 new cases in Quebec, pushing Canada’s tally to 110,723.

A combined three new virus-related fatalities in the two provinces raised Canada’s death toll to 8,855.

Laboratories across Canada have tested more than 3.5 million people as of July 19 and 97,051 - or 88 percent - of infected individuals have recovered.

Despite vastly improved conditions, Canadian public health officials have expressed concern about the recent spike in novel coronavirus cases across the country.

"Passengers at Vnukovo airport can take a high-quality express test for antibodies to SARS-Cov-2. The test result will be ready in 15-20 minutes", the press service said, noting that this would be a paid service.

At the moment, travellers can take tests at the Vnukovo medical and sanitary unit near the airport from 8.30 a.m. to 1.00 p.m. Moscow time (05:30-10:00 GMT).

"Testing can be done at terminal A of Vnukovo airport as soon as this week, the medical staff will work around the clock", the press service added.

Passengers will also be able to take a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test for the coronavirus, the result of which will be ready in 2-3 days, as well as quantitative SARS-CoV-2 antibody tests with results back in 1-2 days.

"I think what we are going to do is I’ll get involved and we’ll start doing briefings, whether it’s this afternoon or tomorrow. Probably, tomorrow", Trump said.

The US president pointed out that the briefing will likely take place at 5:00 p.m. and part of the briefing would pertain - much more than the previous briefings - to vaccines or therapeutics.

"And let’s say, that ended six weeks ago, we’ll start them again", Trump said.

Such briefings are great to get information out to the public on the latest about the situation with the novel coronavirus and the latest on vaccines and therapeutics, Trump added.

"The data is very new. We do welcome the study and congratulate our colleagues at the Oxford University's Jenner Institute and the Oxford Vaccine Group and our colleagues at AstraZeneca for getting this data out there ... In generating T-cell mediated responses and generating neutralizing antibodies, this is a positive result", Michael Ryan, the executive director of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Health Emergencies Programme, said at a WHO press briefing.

Despite the early progress, Ryan said that further extensive testing will be required before the vaccine enters circulation.

"Again, there is a long way to go. These are phase one studies. We need to move into larger-scale real-world trials, but it is good to see more data and more products moving into this very important phase of vaccine discovery", the WHO official said.

The UK government has already secured a deal to receive 100 million doses of the vaccine produced by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca. The pharmaceutical firm is hoping to roll out the vaccine by September. 

"WHO is deeply concerned about the impact of the virus on indigenous peoples in the Americas, which remains the current epicentre of the pandemic. As of July 6, more than 70,000 cases have been reported among indigenous peoples in the Americas and more than 2,000 deaths", the director-general said.

Tedros added that the WHO’s regional office is continuing to cooperate with organizations that look to protect the rights of indigenous peoples in the Americas to reduce the spread of the disease and treat those who test positive.

"WHO’s Regional Office for the Americas recently published recommendations for preventing and responding to COVID-19 among indigenous peoples. The WHO is also working with the Coordinator of Indigenous Organizations of the Amazon River Basin to step up the fight against COVID-19", the director-general remarked.

The Pan American Health Organisation, in a 15 July report published in conjunction with the WHO, called on governments in the region to ensure that indigenous peoples, who often live in remote areas, have suitable access to health care services.

"We cannot allow those congregations to continue. If it happens, .. we are going to have to roll back the opening plan. And we're going to have to close bars and restaurants", New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo said.

Cuomo said that over the weekend, some locations had seen up to 700 people gathering together, disregarding the danger of getting COVID-19 and infecting others.

While the problem is especially acute in New York City, other regions, such as Long Island and Upstate New York, have also witnessed large crowds of young people violating social distancing rules.

"It’s getting worse. I am telling you: it is a problem. It's not a new problem, but it is growing", the governor pointed out.

New York City, once hit the hardest by the pandemic, has now managed to control the spread of the virus and has begun to gradually reopen.

"We will supply the first localized production of antiviral ‘Remdesivir’ medicine at the market next week in the fight against the novel coronavirus",  Iran’s Minister of Health and Medical Education Saeed Namaki was quoted as saying by the Iranian news agency Mehr.

Remdesivir is one of a handful of already-existing antiviral drugs that are believed to be safe and effective for treating COVID-19 patients. The World Health Organisation (WHO) is continuing to conduct trials on the treatment to confidently assess its effectiveness.

Namaki added that Iranian pharmaceutical scientists are also working to produce favipiravir, another antiviral drug that can be used to treat patients with the coronavirus disease, the agency reported.

The WHO has previously distributed supplies of Remdesivir to Iran amid the ongoing epidemiological crisis as part of the organisation’s medical assistance to the country.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The fourth day of talks among EU leaders on a common post-coronavirus recovery fund has so far not resulted in a consensus on terms, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Monday ahead of another negotiation round in Brussels.

"After three days and three nights of a negotiation marathon, we are now entering a crucial phase, but I have the impression that European leaders really want an agreement, they show a clear will to find a solution”, von der Leyen told journalists, adding "We are not there yet, but things are moving in the right direction".

The summit was initially scheduled to end on Saturday, but was extended to a fourth day. This is the first time since the pandemic's onset that European leaders have gathered for an in-person conference.

BERLIN (Sputnik) - German companies involved in COVID-19 research have been alerted by national counterintelligence to the threat of cyberattacks, the country’s Association of Research-Based Pharmaceutical Companies (vfa) confirmed to Sputnik.

"We can confirm that we have been informed by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution about the threat of cyberattacks and passed this information to our members", the association’s spokesman Jochen Stemmler said.

The internal communication on the matter is confidential, he added.

Last week, the Germany Interior Ministry told Sputnik that counterintelligence issued a relevant warning in May. The alert contained "general information" pertaining to the ongoing vaccine-related research, the ministry said, noting that the document did not name any specific countries that could pose a cyberthreat.
The same day, the ministry stated that Germany had not registered any cyberattacks on its major developers of coronavirus vaccines.

"We know that this will be worrying news for M&S employees and their families and we stand ready to support them. Affected employees will be able to access a wide range of support including universal credit and the job seekers' allowance", a Cabinet spokesman told reporters.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Arvind Krishna, CEO of global IT giant IBM, during their video conference, that the country is moving towards development of an integrated, tech and data driven healthcare system, affordable and hassle-free.
India is adopting a "work from home" culture in a big way in the aftermath of COVID-19, Modi added.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - It is an exaggeration to say that a vaccine against COVID-19 will be ready by 2021, let alone by the end of this year, despite London’s heavy investment in several projects to create a safe and effective product, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday.

“Obviously I'm hopeful. I’ve got my fingers crossed. But to say that I’m 100 percent confident that we’ll get a vaccine this year, or indeed next year, is alas, just an exaggeration. We’re not there yet", Johnson said in comments broadcast by Sky News.

The prime minister called on the public to continue to adhere to social distancing guidelines and regulations, which have already been eased significantly since March, given the potential lack of a vaccine for the foreseeable future.

Director of Asia's biggest medical research institute in Delhi Randeep Guleria on Monday said human trials of India’s first domestically-developed coronavirus vaccine has begun at the city's top hospital AIIMS. A total of 12 clinical sites have been identified and 1,800 volunteers have been registered for this trial.

According to Guleria, the trial will initially be conducted on 100 volunteers. He said the phase 1 trial of the vaccine will be done on healthy people aged 18-55 who have no co-morbidity.

He further pointed out that certain areas have hit their peak.

"Delhi seems to have done so because the cases have declined significantly. Certain areas have yet to reach the peak. Cases are increasing in certain states. They will reach the peak a little later", Guleria said.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - It is currently too early to discuss immunisation against COVID-19 in Russia, the Kremlin spokesman noted, stressing that the results of the trials inspire optimism.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Monday commented on media reports claiming that some Russian officials were vaccinated against the coronavirus in April, noting that Russian President Vladimir Putin was not vaccinated.

"No, it has not been certified yet. I believe it is not proper to inject an uncertified vaccine for the head of state", Peskov told reporters, when asked whether Putin had been vaccinated.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Ten more people have been confirmed to be infected with the coronavirus among servicemen and their dependents affiliated with US Forces Korea (USFK), the military said in a press release on Monday.

The USFK had not reported new internal COVID-19 cases since mid-April.

"Six USFK service members and four dependents tested positive for COVID-19 after arriving in South Korea between July 12 and 15", the press release read.

According to the USFK, six of these individuals tested positive during the mandatory initial test upon arrival — two of them with minor symptoms and the other four with no symptoms at all. The remaining four initially tested negative, but developed symptoms and were retested with positive results.

As part of what the USFK described as its "aggressive preventative control measures", all USFK overseas arrivals to South Korea are tested, placed into quarantine for 14 days, and then tested again after that. To get clearance for service, both tests must be negative, otherwise, the servicemen enter into isolation.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russia has registered 5,940 COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours (6,109 yesterday), bringing the cumulative total to 777, 486, the country's coronavirus response centre said on Monday, noting that the daily spike is below 6,000 for the first time since 29 April, when 5,841 cases were recorded.

"Over the past 24 hours, Russia has confirmed 5,940 COVID-19 cases in 85 regions, of which 1,556 (26.2 percent) have been detected with people showing no clinical symptoms", the response centre said in a statement, adding that the total count has now reached 777,486 cases, with the daily increase standing at 0.8 percent.

Moscow registered 578 cases in the given period, which is more than any other region in Russia, followed by the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Region with 236 new cases, and the Sverdlovsk Region with 234 new cases (compared to 591, 237, and 245 yesterday).

As many as 85 COVID-19 patients died in Russia in the same period of time (95 on Sunday), taking the death toll to 12,427.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Bolivian Football Federation (FBF) President Cesar Salinas has died at the age of 58, Alejandro Dominguez, the president of the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL), said.

"It is with great sadness that I learned about the death of my friend Cesar Salinas, the president of the Bolivian Football Federation. Cesar was a man dedicated to sports, and he is leaving us a legacy for developing Bolivian and South American football", Dominguez said on Twitter.

While the CONMEBOL president did not specify the cause of death, regional media reported last week that Salinas had been hospitalised with COVID-19.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The number of arrests pertaining to violations of the coronavirus lockdown in Zimbabwe since the start of the outbreak exceeds 105,000 people, Zimbabwean media reported, citing police.

According to the broadcaster ZBC News, 105,670 people have been arrested as of Saturday.

"Many people are no longer observing lockdown regulations, in just two days more than a thousand people were arrested for unnecessary movement and for not wearing masks. There is also an increase in the number of people who are operating shabeens and backyard beer-drinking binges and we will be arresting all these violators", police spokesperson Paul Nyati said, as quoted by ZBC News.

Additionally, according to the police spokesperson, 276 people have escaped from quarantine centres — 29 of them were subsequently tracked down and will face a trial.

BEIJING (Sputnik) - China has registered 22 cases of the coronavirus infection over the past 24 hours, while 24 people recovered over the given period, the National Health Commission said on Monday, adding that 13 asymptomatic carriers of COVID-19 were recorded in the country.

According to the commission, out of the 22 new cases, 17 are local, while the rest are imported.

The country’s total number of confirmed coronavirus cases now stands at 83,682, the death toll is 4,634. The total number of recovered patients in China stands at 78,799. Meanwhile, the total number of imported cases is 2,012, of which 1,929 have recovered.

India's COVID-19 case tally crosses 1.1 million mark with highest single-day spike of 40,425 new cases and 681 deaths.