New Delhi: The coronavirus pandemic continues to wreak havoc across the globe, the latest count being more than 11 crore cases and over 24 lakh deaths.
We bring you some top stories of Covid-related developments across the globe. While gorillas in East Africa might be in danger of contracting Covid because of tourist selfies, South Africa is offering the AstraZeneca vaccine, obtained from India, to the African Union.
Research finds gorillas contracting Covid because of ‘selfies’
New research has found that taking selfies with mountain gorillas maybe putting them at risk of contracting Covid-19 from people visiting East Africa, reports Euro News.
Primate conservators in UK’s Oxford Brookes University studied 1,000 Instagram posts by tourists and found that masks were rarely worn by people taking such selfies which might be endangering the gorillas.
In the past it has been found that primates such as gorillas share respiratory diseases with humans — earlier outbreaks like Ebola have also caused deaths among these animals.
Also read: Why the coronavirus may not be able to mutate beyond control
South Africa offers AstraZeneca vaccines to African Union
South African Health Minister Zweli Mkhize has offered the country’s consignment of AstraZeneca vaccine, obtained from India, to the African Union, after it concluded that the vaccines weren’t effective on the deadly 501Y.V2 variant of Covid-19, reports Mail and Guardian.
The health minister has offered the vaccines to the countries unaffected by the variant in the hope of recovering consignment costs.
South Africa had acquired one million doses of AstraZeneca from Serum Institute of India, but found the vaccine provided only mild to moderate protection against the variant most rampant in the country.
South Africa has reported 1,494,119 coronavirus cases and 48,313 deaths so far.
Threat to Olympics torch relay in Japan
Tatsuya Maruyama, the governor of Shimane prefecture in Japan has said the area is considering pulling out of the Olympics and not permitting the torch relay through the district, reports The Guardian.
Maruyama had earlier called for the Olympics to be cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic. The torch relay is supposed to start on 25 March from Fukushima and is expected to pass through Shimane.
An estimated 10,000 runners are expected to carry the torch through Japan’s 47 prefectures, over 121 days in a run up to the opening ceremony at national stadium in Tokyo on 23 July.
Japan has reported 4,17,765 coronavirus cases and 7,015 deaths so far.
New Zealand to lift Covid lockdown from Auckland
After the more contagious variant of Covid-19 was found in a family of three, Auckland was put under a snap-lockdown, which will be lifted midnight Wednesday, effectively lasting only 3 days, reports Reuters.
This was the first lockdown imposed in the country in six months, after a harsh lockdown in the very beginning of the pandemic largely contained local transmission.
After the outbreak, Australia suspended its agreement with New Zealand, wherein New Zealanders could visit their neighbouring country without the mandatory 14-day quarantine period.
New Zealand has reported 2,340 coronavirus cases and 26 deaths so far.
What else we are reading:
As the virus drags on, hard-hit French youth struggle: Associated Press
Vanishing act: absent mainland Chinese shoppers, closed stores turn Hong Kong’s Tsim Sha Tsui East into Covid-19 ghost town: South China Morning Post
Also read: Slow vaccination deliberate, will soon rise to 70 lakh/day from 5 lakh: ICMR task force member
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