BEIJING, Aug. 13 (Xinhua) -- The following are the updates on the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

- - - -

TEHRAN -- Iran's COVID-19 cases rose to 336,324 on Thursday after an overnight registration of 2,625 new infections, official IRNA news agency reported.

At her daily briefing, Sima Sadat Lari, the spokeswoman for Iran's Ministry of Health and Medical Education, said out of the new cases in the past 24 hours, 1,246 patients needed to be hospitalized.

- - - -

YEREVAN -- Armenia reported 229 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, bringing its total to 41,023, according to the country's National Center for Disease Control.

Data from the center showed that 405 more patients have recovered in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of recoveries to 33,897.

- - - -

BISHKEK -- Laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 are decreasing significantly in Kyrgyzstan, indicating a downward trend, the country's Deputy Health Minister Mademin Karataev told an online briefing on Thursday.

In line with a decrease in patients with COVID-19, the number of observations are decreasing and makeshift hospitals are being closed, and some hospitals have been resuming operations as formerly, said Karataev.

- - - -

THIMPHU -- The lockdown in Bhutan is likely to extend as another 12 people, who were close contacts of a COVID-19 patient in Phuentsholing town, a commercial hub in southern Bhutan, tested positive for the virus on Thursday.

All 12 people were men as per the ministry of health. They were working with the 25-year-old man who tested positive for the virus on Wednesday with no known history of recent travel.

- - - -

BEIJING -- Xinfadi, the largest wholesale market with fruit, vegetable and meat supplies in Beijing, is to reopen starting Saturday, around two months after its business was suspended for causing a COVID-19 epidemic resurgence, a local official said Thursday.

Zhou Xinchun, executive deputy head of Fengtai District, home to the farm produce market, said part of the market will reopen Saturday, recovering 60 percent of fruits and vegetables transaction volumes in normal times, while the rest will resume business before Sept. 10.

- - - -

CAPE TOWN -- A new round of rolling power blackouts hit South Africa on Thursday despite President Cyril Ramaphosa's promise of no blackouts during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Debt-ridden state-run electricity utility Eskom said rolling blackouts started Thursday morning and would last into the weekend.

- - - -

MOSCOW -- Russia registered 5,057 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, taking its total to 907,758, the country's COVID-19 response center said in a statement Thursday.

Meanwhile, 124 new deaths were reported, taking the nationwide toll to 15,384.

- - - -

MANILA -- The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the Philippines surged to 147,526 after the Department of Health (DOH) reported 4,002 new daily cases on Thursday.

The DOH said that the number of recoveries further rose to 70,387 after 1,403 more patients have survived the disease.

- - - -

WINDHOEK -- Namibia's Minister of Health and Social Services Kalumbi Shangula said on Wednesday that his country is encouraged by China's efforts in finding a vaccine against COVID-19.

"There are several efforts being made especially in China to find vaccine so has Russia also pushed forward," Shangula said when responding to questions at the State House. Enditem

Related

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)