Wednesday

South Korea coronavirus cases highest since March: Live news | News

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  • South Korea reports the highest number of daily coronavirus cases since March, and parliament forced to close amid expectations that authorities will impose tougher restrictions. 
  • The U-turn by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on testing close contacts of people with COVID-19 raises concern among experts about asymptomatic spread of the disease.
  • The Australian state of Victoria has reported its lowest number of cases in nearly two months.
  • More than 24 million people around the world have been diagnosed with the coronavirus, and 15.8 million have recovered, according to Johns Hopkins University. Nearly 826,000 people have died.

Here are the latest updates:

Thursday, August 27

04:40 GMT – Online schooling excludes 463 million children: UN

The UN Children’s Fund says 463 million children are not able to access virtual schooling, which has become necessary during the pandemic, because they don’t have the equipment or access to the internet.

After gathering data from 100 countries, UNICEF said children in South Asia, Africa, the Pacific and East Asia were most seriously affected.

“The sheer number of children whose education was completely disrupted for months on end is a global education emergency,’ said Henrietta Fore, executive director of the fund. 

03:50 GMT – South Korean parliament closed; lawmakers in self-quarantine

South Korea’s parliament has closed after a photojournalist covering the governing party tested postive for COVID-19 on Wednesday, according to Yonhap news agency.

Parliament said more than 50 people, including 14 senior members of the Democratic Party, had been in contact with the journalist and would need to go into self-quarantine and get tested.

Several government offices have also been forced to close because of reported cases, Yonhap said.

03:40 GMT – South Korea urges people to work from home

South Korea is urging employers to allow their staff to work from home.

The country is battling a surge in new cases, mostly linked to churches and an anti-government rally earlier this month, and are worried offices could become hotspots.

“Please carry out thorough checks of risk factors at workplaces, where the work environment is especially vulnerable to infection, such as call centres and logistics warehouses,” said Health Minister Park Neung-hoo as he reminded businesses of the need to adopt flexible working practices. 

02:30 GMT – Hong Kong moves to relax some coronavirus restrictions

Hong Kong is moving to relax some of its rules on social distancing measures from midnight (16:00 GMT) on Thursday for seven days. 

The first phase of relaxation includes the re-opening of indoor premises such as cafes and restaurants for limited hours, as  as well as outdoor sports premises where activities involve little physical contact.

Gatherings of more than two people will remain banned.

02:10 GMT – Urumqi begins new round of testing: state media

In China, the People’s Daily says the city of Urumqi in the far western region of Xinjiang, has begun nucleic acid testing of “key communities” as part of measures to “gradually restore normality”.

The city has reported no new infections for 11 days.

01:35 GMT – South Korea reports biggest jump in cases since March

The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the country recorded 441 new cases of coronavirus in the past 24 hours, the highest daily number since March.

It’s the first time the number has been above 400 since March 7, and raises the prospect of tighter restrictions to curb the spread of the disease. Cases have been in triple digits since August 14.

Tougher restrictions would include a ban on gatherings of more than 10 people, while cinemas, cafes and wedding venues might also have to close.

00:00 GMT – Victoria reports lowest number of daily cases in two months

The Australian state of Victoria reported 23 deaths, and 113 new coronavirus cases – the lowest in nearly two months – helped by a strict lockdown.

The state’s battling a second wave of the virus thought to have emerged from a breach in quarantine rules for returning travellers.

23:00 GMT (Wednesday) – Air New Zealand posts $300m loss as pandemic bites

Air New Zealand has posted a net loss of 454 million New Zealand dollars ($300m) for the financial year ended June 30.

Like many airlines around the world, the closing of borders has led to a collapse in passenger traffic leaving planes on the ground.

About one-third of Air New Zealand’s 12,500 employees are expected to lose their jobs as a result.

22:30 GMT (Wednesday) – Concern at US testing U-turn

Health experts are concerned a sudden US decision to change testing guidance for people who have been exposed to COVID-19 patients but have not developed symptoms risks spreading the virus further.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) now says so-called “close contacts” of people with COVID-19 do not “necessarily need” to be tested if they do not have symptoms.

The CDC has not explained the decision.

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Hello and welcome to Al Jazeera’s continuing coverage of the coronavirus pandemic. I’m,Kate Mayberry in Kuala Lumpur.

Read all the updates from yesterday (August 26),here.

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