MANILA: Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte has lengthened coronavirus restrictions in the capital region and some provinces, his spokesperson said on Saturday, as the Southeast Asian nation logged a new record in daily COVID-19 infections.
The Philippines, which has among the worst coronavirus outbreaks in Asia, is battling a renewed surge in COVID-19 cases driven by community transmission of the more infectious Delta variant.
“We expect the number of cases will continue to increase in the coming days,” Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire told a public briefing.
The health ministry recorded 19,441 new coronavirus cases on Saturday, notching a record-high for the third time in the past nine days. Total confirmed cases have risen to more than 1.93 million, while deaths have reached 33,008, after 167 more fatalities were recorded.
Active cases, at 142,679, were at a four-month high, overwhelming hospitals and health care workers in coronavirus hotspots, health ministry data show.
“Improving vaccination coverage, shortening the duration of detection to isolation, and compliance of people to community health care standards would really help us stop the transmission in communities,” Vergeire said.
The government on Saturday extended the second-highest level of quarantine curbs in the capital region until Sept. 7. Although some businesses can operate at up to 50 percent on-site capacity, restaurant dine-in, personal care services and religious activities are still prohibited in the capital region, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said in a statement.
The capital region, an urban sprawl of 16 cities that is home to more than 13 million people, is the country’s coronavirus epicenter, accounting for a third of the 1.91 million confirmed infections and a quarter of the 32,841 total deaths.
Nine provinces and six cities facing a surge in cases and high health care utilization were also placed under the second-tightest coronavirus curbs.
The government is pinning its hopes for an economic recovery on its inoculation program, which started in March.
The Philippines has so far secured a total of 194.89 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines, enough to inoculate about 100.5 million Filipinos or more than 100 percent of the country’s adult population, the finance ministry said.
Nearly 49 million doses have been delivered, while another 42 million will arrive in a month, said Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez, adding that the government could inoculate everyone by January.
Philippines’ Duterte extends coronavirus curbs as cases hit new record high
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Philippines’ Duterte extends coronavirus curbs as cases hit new record high
- The Philippines is battling a renewed surge in COVID-19 cases driven by the more infectious Delta variant
- Second-highest level of quarantine curbs in the capital region extended until September 7
Two dead, 31 injured in Croatia bus crash
- he health ministry, cited by state news agency Hina, said several badly hurt people had undergone operations in hospital
The accident occurred at 3:00 am (0100 GMT) on a busy freeway some 50 kilometers (30 miles) east of the capital, Zagreb.
The casualties were taken to nearby hospitals, police spokeswoman Maja Filipovic told AFP, adding that an investigation had been launched to determine the causes.
The health ministry, cited by state news agency Hina, said several badly hurt people had undergone operations in hospital.
Photos published by local media showed a double-decker bus lying on its side in the middle of the freeway with its windows broken.
15 killed in head-on road crash in South Africa
- South Africa has a sophisticated and busy road network
- Road accidents claimed more than 11,800 lives in 2023
JOHANNESBURG: A night-time collision between a packed minibus taxi and a pick-up truck has killed 15 people in rural South Africa, a transport official said on Sunday.
Five people were in hospital with serious injuries after the crash at around midnight on Saturday to Sunday near the Eastern Cape town of Maqoma, about 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) south of Johannesburg, provincial transport spokesman Unathi Binqose official told broadcaster Newzroom Afrika.
The drivers of both vehicles were among the dead and an inquest would be opened to determine what happened, Binqose said.
The victims included 13 passengers in the minibus, which was reportedly traveling from the town of Qonce to Cape Town, a journey of nearly 1,000 kilometers.
South Africa has a sophisticated and busy road network. It also has a high rate of road deaths, blamed mostly on speeding, reckless driving and unroadworthy vehicles.
Road accidents claimed more than 11,800 lives in 2023, with pedestrians making up around 45 percent of the victims, according to the latest data from the Road Traffic Management Corporation.
Putin says he hopes there will be no need to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine
- Fear of nuclear escalation has been a factor in US officials’ thinking since Russia invaded Ukraine in early 2022
MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin said in comments broadcast on Sunday said that the need to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine had not arisen, and that he hoped it would not arise.
In a fragment of an upcoming interview with Russian state television published on Telegram, Putin said that Russia has the strength and the means to bring the conflict in Ukraine to a “logical conclusion.”
Responding to a question about Ukrainian strikes on Russia from a state television reporter, Putin said: “There has been no need to use those (nuclear) weapons ... and I hope they will not be required.”
He said: “We have enough strength and means to bring what was started in 2022 to a logical conclusion with the outcome Russia requires.”
Putin in February 2022 ordered tens of thousands of Russian troops into Ukraine, in what the Kremlin calls a “special military operation” against its neighbor.
Though Russian troops were repelled from Kyiv, Moscow’s forces currently control around 20 percent of Ukraine, including much of the south and east.
Putin has in recent weeks expressed willingness to negotiate a peace settlement, as US President Donald Trump has said he wants to end the conflict via diplomatic means.
Fear of nuclear escalation has been a factor in US officials’ thinking since Russia invaded Ukraine in early 2022. Former CIA Director William Burns has said there was a real risk in late 2022 that Russia could use nuclear weapons against Ukraine.
Chinese president to visit Russia on May 7-10
MOSCOW : Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit Russia on May 7-10 and join Vladimir Putin at the 80th commemoration of the Allied victory against Nazi Germany, the Kremlin said on Sunday.
The Russian president’s office said Xi would also hold bilateral talks with Putin and the two were expected to sign “a series of bilateral documents.”
Vehicle crashes into entrance at Manila airport, killing 2 people including a 4-year-old girl
- Dozens of emergency personnel could be seen at Ninoy Aquino International Airport surrounding a black SUV that had rammed into a wall by an entrance
MANILA, Philippines: A vehicle crashed into an entrance at Manila’s airport on Sunday morning, leaving two people dead including a 4-year-old girl, according to the Philippine Red Cross.
The other victim was an adult male, the humanitarian group said in a statement.
Other people were injured in the incident and the driver of the vehicle was in police custody, according to the airport’s operator, New NAIA Infra Co, and the Red Cross.
Dozens of emergency personnel could be seen at Ninoy Aquino International Airport surrounding a black SUV that had rammed into a wall by an entrance. The vehicle was later removed from the site.
The airport operator said it is coordinating with the authorities to investigate the incident.
