Coronavirus: latest global developments

Aug 23, 2020

More than 23 million cases have been registered in 196 countries and territories.

Here are the latest developments in the coronavirus crisis:

- More than 805,000 dead -

The pandemic has killed at least 805,470 people worldwide since surfacing in China late last year, according to a tally from official sources compiled by AFP at 1100 GMT on Sunday.

More than 23 million cases have been registered in 196 countries and territories.

The United States has recorded the most deaths with 176,371, followed by Brazil with 114,250, Mexico with 60,254, India with 56,706 and Britain with 41,423 fatalities.

A health worker collects a swab sample from a resident of a housing society for COVID-19 coronavirus test during a door-to-door testing programme in Kolkata on August 23, 2020. (Photo by Dibyangshu Sarkar / AFP)


- India tops three million cases -

India's confirmed cases cross the three million mark with nearly 70,000 new infections, as the disease continues to surge in the world's second-most-populous nation.

- South Korea 'on the brink' -

After largely bringing its outbreak under control, South Korea returns to tightening curbs to try to contain a new, growing cluster of cases.

"The situation is very grave and serious as we are on the brink of a nationwide pandemic," warns Jung Eun-kyeong, chief of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Nightclubs, karaoke bars and beaches have now been closed, there are tight restrictions on large gatherings and religious services, and face masks will be mandatory in Seoul's public areas from midnight.

A worshipers wearing a face mask holds a rosary during the Pope's weekly Angelus prayer at St. Peter's Square in The Vatican on August 23, 2020 during the COVID-19 infection, caused by the novel coronavirus. (Photo by Vincenzo PINTO / AFP)


- Rohingya fears -

Rohingya in Myanmar's conflict-wracked Rakhine state express fears of an outbreak reaching their overcrowded camps, where nearly 130,000 live, after a spate of infections sends the state capital Sittwe into lockdown.

- Illegal party turns deadly -

Police in Peru say at least 13 people suffocated in a crush during a raid on a nightclub in the capital Lima, where a party of around 120 people was being held despite a ban on such gatherings.


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