November 6 coronavirus news

Local officials and some protesters have expressed their anger at the Italian government over restrictions that came into effect Friday in four hotspot regions – Lombardy, Piedmont, Valle d’Aosta and Calabria. 

In northern Italy, a few hundred people gathered on Thursday evening in the city of Bergamo -- one of cities worst hit by the first wave of the pandemic -- to protest against the new measures ordering people to stay home except for essential necessities, health or work.

Protesters, who included business owners and professions but also members of far-right groups and the opposition League party, demonstrated at city hall then gathered outside the mayor’s residence where they “chanted slogans with flags, banners and smoke bombs,” the city’s mayor Giorgio Gori said on Facebook. 

Italian Health Minister Roberto Speranza defended the government’s decision to declare the four regions as “red zones.” He also said decisions around new restrictions “cannot be the field of a political battle,” adding that “our only enemy is the virus.”

The leaders of the northern regions of Lombardy and Piedmont claimed the government’s decision to impose new restrictions on their areas was based on data that was out of date.

Elsewhere in northern Italy, Milan mayor Beppe Sala urged residents “to stay at home as much as possible in these difficult days” following small anti-lockdown protests there. 

Small protests also erupted in the southern “red zone” of Calabria, with the regional president Nino Spirli saying online that he plans to appeal the government’s decision.

“This region does not deserve an isolation which risks being fatal to it,” Spirli said.

The mayor of the Calabrian village of Carolei, Francesco Iannucci, told state broadcaster RAI that he would not enforce the new lockdown measures, simply by “not doing any control” in bars and restaurants.

Italy reported 35,505 new cases on Thursday, bringing the total to 824,879 since the start of the pandemic. The country also reported 445 more deaths, taking the death toll to 40,192.

Malaysia reported 1,755 new coronavirus cases Friday -- its highest daily increase since the outbreak again, according to its health ministry. 

Three of the new cases reported Friday were imported; the other 1,752 cases were locally transmitted, the ministry added.

The country's total number of confirmed cases now stands at 38,189. Malaysia also reported two new deaths from the virus Friday, bringing its total deaths to 279.

The Malaysian government proposed to allocate more than $242 million (RM1 billion) in the country's 2021 budget to stem the third wave of Covid-19, state news agency Bernama reported.

The US reported more than 121,000 infections Thursday, beating a daily case record it set just 24 hours ago. 

The grim tally comes after Wednesday's record of more than 100,000 cases, which was the first time the US hit a six-figure number of infections. That means in just two days, the country reported more than 220,000 positive tests, bringing the past week's total to more than 660,000 new cases of the virus.

Rising hospitalization: As nationwide cases soar, the number of hospitalized Americans is also climbing, with now more than 53,000 patients across the US, according to the COVID Tracking Project. And doctors have warned that as those numbers move upward, a rise in deaths will follow. 

In the Midwest -- where communities have been hit particularly hard and outbreaks are only worsening -- hospitalizations are up "following the region's sharply accelerating case surge," the project said in a Thursday blog post. 

"Reported deaths from the Midwest are rising as well, several weeks into that region's case surge," the project said.

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South Australia is working to implement an app for people under quarantine at home that would use facial recognition and geo-tracking.

The app will only be available for people eligible for home quarantine in South Australia, while international travelers will continue to quarantine in medi-hotels.

The health department said the app is still going through a procurement process, but authorities are aiming to have it in place in the coming months.

The government hopes the app will free up police resources as it lessens the need for home checks by officers.

"Where necessary, SA Health would liaise with SAPOL in regard to any breaches if detected by the app and as part of our nation-leading quarantine program random police checks would still be conducted," the health department said.

“The new app could add another layer of protection to the Marshall Liberal Government’s already strong plan to protect South Australians from COVID-19,” Minister for Health and Wellbeing Stephen Wade said.  

Germany’s Health Minister warned that “even the best health care system” cannot, in the long run, cope with an unrelenting rise of coronavirus cases as pressure mounts on intensive care units in German hospitals.

Germany remains in a “decisive phase” of the pandemic, the health minister added, after the country set a new daily record of more than 20,000 coronavirus infections on Friday.

“The growth rate is decreasing, but nevertheless we still see a growth,'' Spahn said. "Once the intensive care units are full of Covid patients and if they get overcrowded -- then it is too late.”

On Friday. Germany reported 21,506 new coronavirus infections within 24 hours -- the highest daily case number since the outbreak of the pandemic. The country also registered 166 new virus-related deaths, bringing the total death toll to 11,096, according to the country’s center for disease prevention, Robert-Koch-Institute.

South Korea's Education Ministry has shuttered 76 schools nationwide after students and teachers tested positive for Covid-19 -- another 15 schools closed compared to the previous day.

The ministry announced on Friday that in-person classes would be suspended in the affected schools.

Ten students and a faculty member had tested positive on Thursday from schools in Seoul, Gyeonggi, and South Chungcheong Province, spurring the decision to close schools.

On Friday, Korea's Disease Control Prevention Agency (KDCA) announced 145 new coronavirus cases. South Korea has reported more than 100 new daily cases for the past three days.

The country has recorded a total number of 27,195 confirmed cases and 476 deaths since the pandemic began, according to KDCA.

Russia recorded 20,582 coronavirus cases on Friday, the highest number of cases reported in a single day in the country since the pandemic began, according to data from the country’s coronavirus response center. 

The country has reported a total of 1,733,440 infections, with at least 29,887 deaths.

Russia has seen a surge in coronavirus cases in October, updating its record number of daily increases almost every day. 

Last week, Russia's health regulator imposed a nationwide mask mandate. People across the country must wear masks in public spaces, public transport, parking lots and elevators.

Meanwhile, President Vladimir Putin said last week that he hopes Russia "can start mass vaccination by the end of the year.”

Two Russian coronavirus vaccines were registered for domestic use ahead of large-scale Phase 3 trials, some of which are now ongoing.

Countries across Europe are reporting record high Covid-19 case counts, as concern grows over hospital capacity and new lockdown restrictions are imposed throughout the continent. Here's what you need to know:

Germany

Germany shattered its record for new daily coronavirus infections, recording more than 20,000 cases in a single day for the first time, according to the country’s center for disease prevention, the Robert-Koch-Institute. Meanwhile, the number of people requiring intensive care due to Covid-19 has doubled in the last 10 days, German health minister Jens Spahn said Friday.

Italy

The Italian regions worst hit by the second coronavirus wave entered a new lockdown Friday after the country tallied its highest daily number of both infections and deaths the previous day. Residents in "red zone" regions -- Lombardy, Piedmont, Valle d'Aosta and Calabria -- may only leave home for necessities, health or work. All of Italy is under a 10 pm to 5 am nationwide curfew, with bars and restaurants closing at 6 p.m., while certain areas face harsher restrictions.

Italy reported 35,505 new cases and 445 deaths Thursday, taking its case total to 824,879 and fatalities to 40,192, according to health ministry data.

France

In neighboring France, Paris also announced stricter measures as the country reported a record 58,046 new cases Thursday, according to the French health agency. The country has Europe's highest case number, at 1.6 million infections.

UK

On Wednesday, the UK recorded its second-biggest jump in daily coronavirus cases since the pandemic began. The following day, England entered a second lockdown -- requiring people to stay home in most circumstances -- and at least 104 people were arrested at an anti-lockdown protest in London on Thursday evening.

Greece

Greece will enter a three-week national lockdown on Saturday after reporting almost 10,000 new cases in five days, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced Thursday. The new restrictions require Greeks to text the authorities before leaving home, and high schools will close.

Denmark

The Danish government has announced new restrictions in seven municipalities after scientists there identified a mutated strain of coronavirus linked to the mink population. According to the government, the mutated form of the virus has been passed back to humans. On Thursday, the government announced that dine-in restaurants, pubs, cultural venues and public transportation will be closed in the affected municipalities. People with links to mink farm operations are being encouraged to be tested every three to four days.

Russia

Russia reported 20,582 new coronavirus cases on Friday, the highest number of cases it has ever reported in a single day, according to data from the country’s coronavirus response center. Russia has recorded a total of 1,733,440 cases, with at least 29,887 officially reported deaths. Last week, Russia's health regulator imposed a nationwide mask mandate.

The University of Manchester apologized on Thursday “for the concern and distress caused by the erecting of a fence” around residence halls on its campus. 

The British university said the fences were raised as “a response to a number of concerns received over recent weeks from staff and students on this site about safety and security; particularly about access by people who are not residents,” according to a statement Thursday. 

Hundreds of students have staged a protest against the university’s response to coronavirus, after it erected metal fencing at student accommodation.  

“There was never any intent to prevent students from entering or exiting the site. The fences are being taken down from Friday morning and students are being contacted immediately. Alternative security measures, including additional security patrols are being put in place,” the statement read.

Labour Party lawmaker for Manchester-Gorton Afzal Khan tweeted on Thursday night that students “being physically fenced in” was “deeply distressing” for them and their parents.