Coronavirus: Latest Global Developments

Paris, Sept 13 (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 14th Sep, 2021 ) :Here are the latest developments in the coronavirus crisis.

- No need for booster - Vaccines are effective enough at preventing severe cases of Covid-19 that there is no current need for the general population to be given third doses, according to a report in The Lancet.

- Jabs for UK 12-15 year-olds - All children aged 12-15 should be offered Covid-19 vaccinations, but not be obliged to take them, according to top UK medical advisers.

- Pope's solidarity call - Pope Francis calls for Europe to show "solidarity" during the economic recovery from the pandemic as he visits Slovakia, one of the worst-hit countries on the continent.

- UK cancels vaccine contract - The British government has terminated a supply deal for a potential Covid jab being developed by French-Austrian biotech laboratory Valneva - Vietnamese flee - Fifteen people including a seven-year-old boy are found inside a refrigerated truck in Vietnam after trying to escape locked-down areas of the south badly hit by the virus.

- Auckland extends lockdown - New Zealand's largest city will remain in strict lockdown for at least another week as a Delta variant outbreak "rumbles along".

- South Africa health pass - President Cyril Ramaphosa announces plans for "vaccine passports" to counter public scepticism about getting inoculated ahead of an easing of restrictions this week.

- Portugal lifts mask requirement - People no longer need to wear masks outside in Portugal, which leads Europe with nearly eight out of 10 of its inhabitants fully vaccinated.

- Greece's tough school - Greek teenagers go back to school with those who have not been vaccinated forced to pay for tests to be allowed back into class.

- It's a picnic in Sydney - Virus lockdown rules are relaxed for fully vaccinated people in Sydney, with small groups allowed to meet for picnics for the first time in months.

- Over 4.6 million dead -The coronavirus has killed at least 4,630,215 people since the outbreak emerged in China in December 2019, according to an AFP compilation of official data at 1830 GMT.

The US is the worst-affected country with 660,177 deaths, followed by Brazil with 586,851, India with 442,874, Mexico 267,748 and Peru 198,764.