.png)
- The Indonesian capital will go back into lockdown in a bid to contain an escalating outbreak that has pushed hospitals to the brink of collapse.
- India reports a record 95,735 daily cases of coronavirus as outbreak continues unabated.
- Nearly 27.8 million people around the world have now been diagnosed with the coronavirus and 902,468 have died, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. Some 18.7 million people have recovered.
Here are the latest updates:
Thursday, September 10
05:20 GMT – US cases could be three to 20 times higher than publicly confirmed
A study published in Nature says the US has a “substantial underestimation” of coronavirus cases because of its restrictions on testing, and the actual figure could be three to 20 times higher.
The US mainly tests people with moderate to severe symptoms so those with mild or no symptoms are rarely tested, noted the researchers, led by Sean Wu of the Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of California, Berkeley.
The team analysed testing rates in each state between February and April and corrected for incomplete and inaccurate tests. They found discrepancies between states, with higher rates of testing in the northwest and northeast, and lower levels in the south and Midwest.
04:45 GMT – Singapore to distribute free contact-tracing tokens from Monday
Singapore is to start distributing its TraceTogether token, a contact-tracing device, from Monday. Use of the token is not mandatory, but it is free of charge to anyone who wants one.
The city-state already has a contact-tracing app, but the token, which also uses Bluetooth to track movements, does not need a smartphone. Initial distribution will be in areas with a large number of older people.
04:35 GMT – India posts another record for daily cases
India’s reported another record for daily coronavirus cases with the health ministry confirming 95,735 cases over the past 24 hours.
Some 1,172 people in India also died from the virus, the ministry said.
04:20 GMT – ‘Drug war’ killings surge in Philippines during pandemic
“Drug war” killings in the Philippines have surged during the pandemic, official data shows.
Human Rights Watch says data from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency showed that 155 people were killed over the four months from April to July, compared with 103 between December and March.
The government has imposed a series of lockdowns and quarantines of differing severity since March 16. It says 5,810 people have died in President Duterte’s drugs crackdown since he took office in 2016, but rights groups say the actual figure is much higher.
03:05 GMT – Taoist priest honours China’s pandemic dead with memorial tablets
In a room inside a hillside Taoist monastery in China’s Shandong province is a collection of 558 memorial tablets inscribed with the names and home towns of people who died after contracting the coronavirus or while battling the pandemic.
Some, like Li Wenliang, are household names in China. Others, like Liu Hewei, are not.
“No matter what religion or beliefs they hold, their spirit deserves to be passed on. In fact, they live on in our hearts,” said Taoist priest Liang Xingyang, who started the collection on January 29, shortly after Chinese authorities announced that the virus could pass between humans.
02:40 GMT – Coronavirus might invade the brain: Preliminary study
A preliminary study has found headaches, confusion and delirium experienced by some COVID-19 patients could be the result of the coronavirus directly invading the brain.
According to the paper, which was led by Yale immunologist Akiko Iwasaki, the virus is able to replicate inside the brain, and its presence starves nearby brain cells of oxygen. The prevalence of this is not yet clear.
S Andrew Josephson, chair of the neurology department at the University of California, San Francisco, said “understanding whether or not there is direct viral involvement of the brain is extraordinarily important.” But he added that he would remain cautious until the paper underwent peer review.
02:25 GMT – Pressure in Victoria to lift nighttime curfew
Australia’s health minister says the state of Victoria should consider lifting a nighttime curfew in Melbourne if it has not been imposed for health reasons.
The state has been under pressure over the 8pm to 5am (10:00 to 19:00 GMT) curfew – one of a number of strict measures imposed to stifle a surge in coronavirus that emerged in early August – since the chief health officer told local radio he had not recommended the policy.
State premier Daniel Andrews has said the curfew was introduced to make it easier for police to enforce the other lockdown measures, which remain in force until September 28. The curfew has been fuelling a lot of discussion on social media.
The only other places I’m aware have used curfews are those with crisis-level epidemics (New York, Spain at their peak) and autocratic governments in Africa https://t.co/dvgLhS21Yz
— Max Walden (@maxwalden_) September 10, 2020
“This is an unprecedented assault on civil liberties.
“If it’s necessary … fair enough. But where’s the evidence? Where’s the advice it would be?”
Neil Mitchell understands police weren’t consulted before the introduction of the curfew. https://t.co/eiTxm4D8Vh
— 3AW Melbourne (@3AW693) September 9, 2020
I know the curfew in Melbourne has stopped me from making an 11pm Maccas run at least twice in the last 6 weeks.
So that’s good… right?
— Christopher Johnson (@Dream_Brother_) September 10, 2020
02:15 GMT – Tokyo mulls lowering alert level as cases ease
Japanese broadcaster NHK says Tokyo is considering lowering the alert level in the capital because cases are easing.
The capital is currently at the highest level.
At the national level, officials will meet on Friday to consider easing restrictions on large-scale events.
01:10 GMT – COVID-19 widens gap between rich and poor: Save the Children
In the six months since the coronavirus pandemic was declared, the most vulnerable children have disproportionately missed out on access to education, healthcare, and food, and suffered the greatest protection risks, according to a new global survey by Save the Children.
The survey, based on the experience of 25,000 children and their caregivers across 37 countries, found:
- Two-thirds of the children had no contact with teachers at all during lockdown, while eight in ten believed they had learned little or nothing since schools closed.
- Some 93 percent of households that lost over half of their incomes due to the pandemic reported difficulties in accessing health services.
- Violence at home doubled to 17 percent when schools were closed.
“To protect an entire generation of children from losing out on a healthy and stable future, the world needs to urgently step up with debt relief for low-income countries and fragile states, so they can invest in the lives of their children,” Inger Ashing, Save the Children’s CEO, said in a statement.
00:30 GMT – Jakarta heads back to lockdown amid coronavirus ’emergency’
Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan says the Indonesian capital will head back into lockdown as it steps up efforts to tackle what he said was an “emergency – more pressing than the start of the pandemic” because modelling showed the capital’s hospitals would be overwhelmed by September 17 if no action was taken
From Monday, all offices will be closed except for businesses in 11 “essential” fields. Entertainment venues will be closed and all gatherings banned. Religious events will only be allowed at the village level for people who live in the area, he added.
Indonesia has recorded 8,336 deaths from coronavirus, the most in Southeast Asia.
—-
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 (September 9) here.
