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In the fight against the corona virus, the Italian government is severely restricting freedom of movement during Christmas and New Years. The decision was made by Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte’s cabinet on Thursday night. With strict travel bans from December 21 to January 6, Rome wants to prevent the number of infections from rising again. The 60 million Italians should be deterred from going on Christmas holidays in large numbers or visiting relatives in other parts of the country.
Specifically, the cabinet decided to ban travel between the regions of Italy. Then people are not allowed to go to their holiday apartments on the coast or in the mountains. Exceptions are possible for work, health, and other emergencies. Return to main place of residence is still permitted.
During Christmas and the New Year, Rome pulls the reins even more: on December 25 and 26 and January 1, 2021, people must stay in their cities and communities. Again, there are exceptions for work or emergency situations.
Health Minister Roberto Speranza had said in parliament on Wednesday that Italy threatened “a third wave” in January and February with no major Christmas restrictions. Italy has officially counted more than 1.6 million corona infections so far.
More than 3,000 deaths per corona in one day in the US
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The number of corona deaths recorded in 24 hours in the US has passed the 3,000 threshold for the first time since the pandemic began. On Wednesday, authorities reported 3,157 deaths with a confirmed coronavirus infection, according to data from Johns Hopkins University (JHU). The highest figure so far with 2,607 deaths was recorded on April 15.
For the second time since the start of the pandemic, the number of new infections reported in one day surpassed the 200,000 mark on Wednesday. According to information from JHU, the highest value to date was recorded on Friday with around 205,000 new cases. Experts had anticipated a nationwide spike in infections ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday last week. The CDC health authority had advised against family visits and travel in advance. However, many people did not comply.
In total, more than 13.9 million people have been infected by the corona virus in the country of around 330 million inhabitants. Since the pandemic began, more than 273,000 people have died from the Sars-CoV-2 pathogen. In absolute terms, that is more than in any other country in the world.
New infections in the West Bank hit a record
The number of new coronavirus infections has peaked in the West Bank. As the Palestinian Authority announced on Thursday, 1,689 new cases were recorded in 24 hours, more than ever in one day. There are currently 13,357 active cases in the area of around four million residents.
In the Gaza Strip, where two million people live, 827 new infections and 10,321 active cases have been recorded. For comparison: Israel’s Ministry of Health, a country of nine million, tallied 1,523 new infections and 11,660 active cases on Thursday.
The Palestinian Authority took strict measures on November 23 to curb the spread of the virus. There are night curfews in the West Bank on weekdays and a full shutdown on weekends. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas extended the state of emergency for 30 days on Wednesday.
Hackers attacked vaccine distribution initiative
Security researchers from the IT group IBM have discovered attacks by cybercriminals on the initiative to distribute corona vaccines. In September, before several companies announced they had developed a vaccine, criminals used phishing emails to obtain information on the initiative from the World Health Organization (WHO), IBM IT experts said. The initiative aims to ensure that the vaccine’s cold chain remains intact. They could not say who was behind it and if the campaign was successful.
Since the attacks were relatively accurate and characterized by an attempt to leave no traces, there may be a state behind them. The targets of the cyber campaign were in countries such as Germany, Italy, South Korea, and Taiwan. According to IBM, it is conceivable that the attackers were eavesdropping, undermining the reliability of one of the agents, or trying to trigger a malfunction. Specifically, according to IBM, executives likely connected to the cold chain initiative were the target of cyberattacks, including those from the EU Commission’s Directorate General for Taxes and Customs Union and chemical companies.
Moscow wants to open the first corona vaccination centers
After a further increase in new corona infections in Russia, the capital Moscow wants to open its first vaccination centers this Saturday. Mayor Sergej Sobyanin announced this on Thursday. All the conditions for mass vaccinations are met. The personnel had been trained and the Russian “Sputnik V” vaccine could be stored in special refrigerators. A dating portal will be activated on Friday.
In Russia, authorities reported 28,145 new infections in the 24 hours of Thursday morning, more than ever. Only in Moscow 7,750 verified cases of infection were registered. In total, there have been more than 2.37 million since the outbreak of the pandemic. The number of deaths related to the virus increases by 554 to 41,607.
Russian President Vladimir Putin had previously announced the start of mass vaccinations at the end of next week. Initially, doctors and teachers must be vaccinated on a voluntary basis. According to the president, initially two million doses of the Russian vaccine will be used. That would be enough for a million people because the vaccine consists of two parts.
The Russian portal The bell reported, however, citing unspecified sources on vaccine production that only 500,000 doses of vaccine would be realistic by the end of the year. The start date for mass vaccination had been postponed several times. According to Health Minister Michail Muraschko, more than 100,000 people in Russia have already been vaccinated with “Sputnik V.”
Austria toughened entry rules
Anyone entering Austria as of next Monday from countries with an incidence value of 14 days greater than 100 must isolate themselves for ten days. According to data from the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control, almost all European countries, including Germany, exceeded this value on Wednesday. Chancellor Sebastian Kurz (ÖVP) announced the new regulation on Wednesday in Vienna after a meeting of the Council of Ministers. Kurz justified the move by saying that “many infections” had been “brought in” from abroad since the summer. That should not be repeated.
In addition, Kurz also announced the first steps of easing the strict restrictions that have been in place since mid-November. As of December 7, the exit restrictions, which currently still apply 24 hours, will be limited to the hours of 8 pm to 6 am It will also be possible to meet members of another household. Students in the lower grades and Matura grades should return to classroom teaching. Retailers, museums and providers of “body-friendly services” may also reopen. Because the Corona measures that have been in place for two weeks have been a “success,” the easing can now take place as planned, Kurz said.
However, some areas remain restricted. For example, restaurants and tourism companies should not be able to reopen until January 7. Kurz said the situation had eased a bit, but: “The infection rates are still at an extremely high level.” Over the course of December, the Austrian federal government wants a large portion of the population to be tested for Covid-19. For this, these days massive voluntary tests are being initiated in the first federal states.
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UK grants emergency approval to Biontech vaccine
The UK is the first country to grant emergency approval to the Biontech and Pfizer vaccine. The German company’s vaccine receives its first emergency approval from the UK Medicines Agency. Extradition to the UK will take place immediately.
Biontech and US pharmaceutical manufacturer Pfizer announced Wednesday morning that Britain’s drug regulator Regulatory Agency for Medicines and Health Products (MHRA) granted the first approval for the joint Covid-19 vaccine. A spokesperson for the UK Health Ministry confirmed the approval. Therefore, it is the world’s first crown vaccine that can be released to the market after its effectiveness and tolerability have been fully tested. Pfizer and Biontech want to start shipping the vaccine to the UK immediately. There is a contract with the UK for 40 million doses for 20 million vaccines. The companies did not say how much vaccine will be delivered to the British in the first shipments.
The European Parliament has criticized Britain’s advance. “I think this decision is problematic,” says German EPP MP Peter Liese. He recommended that EU member states not emulate this approach. Rather, he advocates that the European Medicines Agency (EMA) carefully examine the vaccine, warns the CDU politician.
