Latest On Coronavirus

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 23rd July, 2021) The death toll from the coronavirus infection in the world topped 4.131 million, over 192.3 million cases of infection were detected, according to the US-based Johns Hopkins University, which tracks and compiles data from federal and local authorities, media and other sources.

As of 20:10 GMT Thursday, the number of cases globally is 192,343,125, including 4,131,804 fatalities. As many as 3.72 billion of vaccine doses have been administered to date.

The Kremlin has no opinion on the initiative to impose responsibility for calls against COVID-19 vaccination, spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

Scientists of the Russian Federal Medical and Biological Agency (FMBA) said it had developed a new test system for detecting the most relevant coronavirus strains (Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Delta), the test system was registered on Wednesday.

A total of 200 million people in the European Union have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, which amounts to almost 55% of the adult population, European Commission spokeswoman Dana Spinant said.

Poland is considering the use of different vaccines for the first and second shots for those who have experienced side effects after the first inoculation, Health Minister Adam Niedzielski said.

Latvia will provide Tunisia with 165,000 AstraZeneca vaccine doses against COVID-19, Health Ministry spokesperson Armins Kalnins said.

The Tallinn Emergency Medical Service (TEMS) has dismissed 15 staff members after they refused to get vaccinated, Raul Adlas, the TEMS head, said.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis urged school employees to get vaccinated against the coronavirus ahead of the upcoming school year to avoid a surge in infections in classrooms.

US President Joe Biden said he expected children in the United States under the age of 12 to be eligible for a coronavirus vaccine sometime between the end of August and October.

The United States does not plan to share coronavirus vaccines with North Korea, but remains concerned about the human rights situation in that country, US State Department spokesperson Ned price said.

Africa will receive the first batch out of the 400 million contracted doses of the Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccine next week, Strive Masiyiwa, the African Union's special envoy on COVID-19, said.

Five member states of the World Trade Organization (WTO) alone will account for three quarters of the entire global output of COVID-19 vaccines this year, WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said.

Governments around the world must act to reduce the high costs of testing to detect the novel coronavirus and find more cost-effective solutions, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said.

Russia registered 24,471 COVID-19 cases over the past 24 hours, up from 23,704 the day before, taking the overall tally to 6,054,711, the federal response center said.

The Russian authorities have all the data on the incidence of coronavirus in the country at their disposal to take all the necessary preventive measures, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.

India has confirmed 41,383 new cases of the coronavirus over the past 24 hours, with the total number of those infected having reached 31,257,720, the country's ministry of health and family welfare said.

The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Brazil has increased by 54,517 to 19,473,954 within the past 24 hours, the national ministry of health said.

Germany extended its restrictions on entering the country from territories with new COVID-19 variants, which were about to to expire on July 27, Health Minister Jens Spahn said.

Germany could start preparing tougher measures against COVID-19 in light of a sharp increase in new cases, Chancellor Angela Merkel warned.

The Italian Council of Ministers has again extended the COVID-19 state of emergency, this time until December 31, Health Minister Roberto Speranza said.

People have gathered to protest against the introduction of COVID-19 passes in front of the Luxembourg Palace in the French capital, a Sputnik correspondent reported.

Food and drink businesses in Finnish regions with fast spread of the coronavirus will be required to observe new restrictions on liquor sale and opening hours beginning from July 24, the Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs and Health said.

UK supermarket chains warned that they were experiencing problems with some product supply and staff attending work after the official health app told hundreds of thousands of workers to isolate following contact with someone with COVID-19, but shortages were not widespread so far, a Sputnik correspondent has confirmed.

The Wuhan Institute of Virology said that it had never created the coronavirus and, therefore, had not let it leak from a laboratory.

The Biden administration continues to support phase two of the World Health Organization's (WHO) investigation into the origins of the novel coronavirus despite China's decision to reject the probe, White House spokesperson Jen Psaki said.

The Biden administration has allocated $3 billion to invest in economically-disadvantaged communities, particularly those unduly hurt by the coronavirus pandemic, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said.

Peruvian police have arrested nine members of a criminal band who were illegally selling places in the intensive care units of a hospital in the capital region while charging their victims tens of thousands of US Dollars, newspaper El Peruano reported.