India’s case-load surpasses 800,000
India’s coronavirus cases passed 800,000 with the biggest spike of 27,114 cases in the past 24 hours, causing nearly a dozen states to impose a partial lockdown in high-risk areas.
The new confirmed cases took the national total to 820,916. The Ministry of Health also reported another 519 more deaths, taking the total to 22,123. A surge in infections saw the cases jumping from 600,000 to more than 800,000 in nine days.
Eight of India’s 28 states, including the worst-hit Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Delhi, account for nearly 90 percent of all infections.
Dubai announces new economic support package
Dubai has announced a new package to help the economy cope with the effects of the coronavirus outbreak, worth 1.5 billion dirhams ($408 million), the crown prince of the emirate, Hamdan Bin Mohammed Al-Maktoum, said on Twitter.
The package is the third announced by Dubai, the second-largest and wealthiest member of the United Arab Emirates federation. The three packages are worth a total of 6.3 billion dirhams, Sheikh Hamdan said.
Brazil’s death toll surpasses 70,000
Brazil exceeded 70,000 coronavirus deaths on Friday, the health ministry said, though the number of daily fatalities appears to be stabilizing.
The ministry said there had been 45,000 new infections and 1,200 deaths over the last 24 hours, taking the totals to 1.8 million cases and 70,400 deaths.
Brazil is the second-worst affected country in the world after the United States.
Iran’s president calls for ban on weddings
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani called for big gatherings such as weddings and wakes to be banned to stem a rise in coronavirus infections, but insisted the country’s economy had to stay open.
Shortly after Rouhani’s televised speech, a police official in Tehran announced the closure of all wedding and mourning venues in the capital until further notice.
SOURCE: Al Jazeera and news agencies
