scorecardresearch
Friday, March 29, 2024
Support Our Journalism
HomeWorldCovid-19 pandemic: Malaysia cases surge amid PM resignation, New Zealand goes into...

Covid-19 pandemic: Malaysia cases surge amid PM resignation, New Zealand goes into lockdown

ThePrint brings you some important global stories on the coronavirus pandemic.

Follow Us :
Text Size:

New Delhi: The Covid-19 pandemic continues to be a cause of concern worldwide, as cases remain high amid the ongoing vaccination drives. The current count stands at 20,94,10,439 cases and 43,95,161 deaths.

While Malaysia is experiencing a record high Covid surge as it faces political uncertainty, New Zealand went into national lockdown over a single case while Japan extended its state of emergency ahead of the Tokyo Paralympics.

Malaysia reports record-high daily cases in wake of political crisis

Malaysia reported 22,242 new Covid cases Wednesday, a record high in daily cases since the start of the pandemic, The Star reports.

The health ministry’s director-general also provided a state-wide breakdown of the new cases, with Selangor emerging as the virus hotspot with 6,858 cases. Sabah came a distant second with 2,413 cases.

The continued rise in infections follows the resignation of Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin Monday after losing majority support, 17 months into his tenure.

PM Yassin had faced mounting criticism over his government’s response to the pandemic, according to Channel News Asia.

Malaysia has reported 14,44,270 cases and 13,077 deaths in total.


Also read: Survey shows two-thirds of people around the world want to work from home after Covid-19


New Zealand re-enters national lockdown due to ‘growing cluster’

New Zealand re-entered national lockdown for the first time in a year Tuesday night after a single case was detected in Auckland, The Guardian reports.

As of Wednesday, the outbreak has grown from a single case to a Covid cluster of 10 cases in Auckland, linked to a previous Delta variant outbreak in Sydney, Australia.

The initial case, a 58-year-old man who travelled from Auckland to Coromandel and back, has since been reported by The Guardian as the country’s first Delta variant transmission.

New Zealand’s lockdown policy comes as the country’s vaccination rate is considered by experts as too low to not consider lockdowns, Stuff.co.nz reports.

New Zealand has recorded 2,936 cases and 26 deaths since the start of the pandemic.

Japan extends state of emergency in Tokyo ahead of Paralympics

Japan has extended its state of emergency in its capital, Tokyo, and other regions due to a continued surge in Covid cases a week ahead of the Paralympic Games, Reuters reports.

According to Kyodo News, the emergency, which was scheduled to end 31 August, will now go on until 12 September, a week after the conclusion of the Paralympics.

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said Tuesday that the state of emergency will not be extended nationwide yet, but expanded the emergency restrictions to several new prefectures in the country.

Japan has recorded 11,79,176 Covid cases and 15,467 Covid deaths overall.

(Edited by Paramita Ghosh)


Also read: Covid-19 pandemic: China reports highest spike since January, Florida now a hotspot


 

 

Subscribe to our channels on YouTube, Telegram & WhatsApp

Support Our Journalism

India needs fair, non-hyphenated and questioning journalism, packed with on-ground reporting. ThePrint – with exceptional reporters, columnists and editors – is doing just that.

Sustaining this needs support from wonderful readers like you.

Whether you live in India or overseas, you can take a paid subscription by clicking here.

Support Our Journalism

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Most Popular