Coronavirus Updates
The eastern Chinese city of Qingdao will test all 9 million residents for COVID-19 after an outbreak connected to a hospital treating imported infections, the city’s Municipal Health Commission said in a statement on Monday.
The United States recorded at least 44,614 new coronavirus cases and 389 additional fatalities on Sunday, according to the Johns Hopkins coronavirus tracker. As of early Monday morning, the total number of coronavirus cases in the US stood at 7,762,809, with 214,771 deaths and 3,075,077 recoveries.
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday is expected to outline new coronavirus measures in an address to lawmakers at the House of Commons. The new system of COVID-19 alert levels will include medium, high and very high, according to a government statement.
The total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in India passed the 7 million mark on Sunday, according to the Health Ministry. India is currently second, behind the United States, in total infections, with 7,120,538 as of Monday’s update from the Johns Hopkins coronavirus tracker.
Oman on Sunday evening began imposing a full nighttime lockdown as part of efforts to contain the coronavirus, the state news agency ONA reported. The measure limiting movement from 8 pm until 5 am will be in effect until October 24.
In a letter addressed to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Health Minister Yuli Edelstein, Israeli Chief Rabbi David Lau on Sunday called on the government to allow weddings. Israel is in the middle of a nationwide lockdown with gatherings restricted to 10 people indoors and 20 people outdoors, along with travel restrictions.
Iranian Vice President Ali Akbar Salehi, who also heads the country’s atomic energy agency, has contracted the coronavirus, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Sunday.
The PLO’s Department of Public Diplomacy and Policy has announced that the department head, PLO Executive Committee member Dr. Hanan Ashrawi, has tested positive for the novel coronavirus. The announcement said that all official engagements and scheduled events will be postponed until Ashrawi fully recovers.