Covid-19: demonstrations against the health pass, new restrictions in Spain

Spain is tightening the screw in the face of a sudden explosion in cases of the delta variant, when more than 19,000 people demonstrated in France against the health “dictatorship”.

• Events in France and Greece

More than 19,000 people, according to the authorities, demonstrated in France in the name of "freedom" to protest against the announcements of President Emmanuel Macron on the health pass, vaccination and "dictatorship".

Read also: Is it legal to condition access to public places to the health pass?

In Greece, around 4,000 people, according to police, protested in central Athens against government measures announced to curb the spread of the Delta variant of the coronavirus.

• Two essential doses of vaccine against the Delta variant

The administration of two doses of the vaccine is essential to protect against the Delta variant of the coronavirus, the European regulator said, calling on European Union member states to speed up their vaccination programs.

Read also: Variant Delta: the rebound could be controlled with the increase in vaccination

• Spain at the time of the return of restrictions

Closure of nightclubs in confined spaces, restrictions on opening hours or the number of customers and even reinstatement of the curfew: faced with a sudden explosion in the number of Covid-19 cases, the various regions of Spain are closing in gradually.

Catalonia, the epicenter of this fifth wave of the pandemic, has asked regional justice for the green light to impose a night curfew in the cities most affected, including the capital, Barcelona.

• Childhood immunization: the UN sounds the alarm

The UN sounded the alarm Thursday on a risk of "absolute catastrophe" if the dangerous delay in the vaccination of children because of the Covid-19 pandemic is not caught up and if the health restrictions are lifted too quickly .

In 2020, 23 million children fell through the cracks and did not receive all three doses of the diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis vaccine or DTP3.

Unprotected children and too rapid lifting of health restrictions against Covid which also partially protected certain childhood diseases - are already having their effects, with for example measles rashes in Pakistan, according to the WHO.

• Argentina crosses 100,000 dead mark

Argentina has passed the 100,000 dead mark from Covid-19.

The number of deaths in the country of 45 million inhabitants is 100,250 for more than 4.7 million reported cases, according to the latest bulletin from the health authorities.

• Indonesia, new epicenter in Asia for the virus

Indonesia, which on Wednesday announced a record 54,000 new cases of coronavirus in 24 hours, has become the new epicenter of the virus's circulation in Asia, overtaking India.

Read also: Are the vaccines against Covid-19 still in the experimentation phase?

• Record of contaminations in Senegal

Senegal recorded a record number of Covid-19 contaminations on Wednesday, a progression described as "

dazzling

" by President Macky Sall who, however, did not announce new health restrictions a few days before the major Eid celebrations.

• Epidemic on the Queen Elizabeth after a stopover in Cyprus

More than a hundred crew members of the British Navy aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth were infected with Covid-19 during a stopover in Cyprus in early July, according to a British official and media.

Read also: Vaccination of teens: the expected benefit outweighs the risks

• The Washington Obelisk reopens to the public

The Washington Monument, the emblematic obelisk of the American capital, has reopened its doors to the public after six months of closure, taking advantage of the improvement in the health situation in the United States and in order to revive tourism.

• Over four million dead

The pandemic has killed at least 4.053 million people around the world since the onset of the disease at the end of December 2019, according to a report established by AFP from official sources Wednesday in the middle of the day.

The United States is the most affected country with 608,104 deaths, followed by Brazil (537,394), India (411,408), Mexico (235,277) and Peru (194,606).

These figures, which are based on daily reports from national health authorities, are generally underestimated.

WHO estimates deaths could be two to three times higher.