OVERSEAS | ABS-CBN News

Army patrols Sydney streets as Brisbane extends COVID-19 lockdown

Reuters
Aug 02 10:41 AM

SYDNEY - Australian officials on Monday extended a snap three-day lockdown in the city of Brisbane and some neighboring regions while hundreds of army personnel began patrolling Sydney to help enforce COVID-19 lockdown rules. Read more »

Cambodia to mix vaccines as booster shots to fight COVID

Reuters
Aug 02 08:18 AM

Cambodia will begin offering a booster shot against Covid-19, switching between the AstraZeneca and Chinese COVID-19 vaccines in an effort to fight the spread of the coronavirus in the Southeast Asian country. Read more »

Fires rage across southern Europe, forcing hundreds to evacuate

Agence France-Presse
Aug 02 02:08 AM

Dozens of villages were evacuated in tourist hotspots in southern Turkey on Sunday as wildfires that have claimed six lives raged for the fifth day, while Greece, Italy and Spain were also hit by blazes. Read more »

Myanmar junta chief says new elections in two years

Agence France-Presse
Aug 01 10:27 PM

Myanmar's junta chief said Sunday that elections would be held and a state of emergency lifted by August 2023, extending the military's initial timeline given when it deposed Aung San Suu Kyi six months ago. Read more »

Fauci predicts US will not return to lockdowns despite Delta variant risks

Sarah Lynch, Reuters
Aug 01 09:55 PM

President Joe Biden's chief medical adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci on Sunday said he does not expect the United States will return to lockdowns, despite the growing risks of COVID-19 infections posed by the Delta variant.   Read more »

Thailand extends pandemic measures, expands lockdown areas

Reuters
Aug 01 08:41 PM

BANGKOK - Thailand on Sunday extended tighter containment measures in the capital and high-risk provinces probably until the end of August in a bid to slow the spread of COVID-19 as the country deals with its biggest outbreak to date. Read more »

Thai monks don protective gear as COVID cases surge

Agence France-Presse
Aug 01 02:33 PM

As COVID cases surge in Thailand, some Buddhist monks are donning PPE over their distinctive robes, delivering oxygen cylinders, taking nasal samples to help with testing, and even helping carry the dead to the crematoriums. Read more »

6 dead, thousands evacuated in Turkey wildfire

Umit Bektas, Reuters
Aug 01 02:11 PM

A picture taken with drone shows the Icmeler region burnt during a wildfire near Marmaris, Turkey, on Saturday. Read more »

Thousands join protest against France’s COVID-19 health pass

Geoffroy Van Der Hasselt, AFP
Aug 01 01:25 PM

Riot mobile gendarmes shoot with cougar grenade launcher as a protester waves a French flag with the cross of Lorraine, during the national day of protest against the COVID-19 health pass in Paris, France on Saturday. Read more »

Myanmar coup: Six months of turmoil

Agence France-Presse
Aug 01 10:45 AM

More than 900 people have since been killed and thousands of others arrested after the violent suppression of mass protests against junta rule.   Read more »

China, Australia ramp up COVID-19 curbs as Delta variant spreads

Laurie Chen with Agence France-Presse bureaus
Aug 01 10:25 AM

China and Australia ramped up COVID-19 curbs Saturday as Delta variant cases surged and tens of thousands rallied in France against restrictions designed to stop the pandemic.   Read more »

COVID-19 reaches flood-hit city of Zhengzhou as virus continues to spread across China

Sarah Zheng, South China Morning Post
Aug 01 07:52 AM

The Delta variant continues to advance across China, with 30 local cases and 25 imported ones reported on Saturday. Zhengzhou was hit by record rainfall last week and the city’s Communist Party chief warned of an ‘extremely serious’ situation with further cases suspected. Read more »

Chinese President Xi Jinping calls for greater focus on military development

Eduardo Baptista, South China Morning Post
Aug 01 07:49 AM

Xi tells a Politburo study session that the country needs to ‘make preparations for military struggle’. His comments come ahead of an important PLA anniversary and at a time when China is facing a growing security threat on its border with Afghanistan. Read more »

Delta variant rampant in Asia; Tokyo, Thailand, Malaysia post record COVID infections

Reuters
Jul 31 07:36 PM

Cases surged in Sydney as well, where police cordoned off the central business district to prevent a protest against a strict lockdown. Read more »

China pauses passport renewals to try to keep COVID-19 Delta variant out

Mimi Lau, South China Morning Post
Jul 31 09:25 AM

China has stopped issuing and renewing passports for non-urgent purposes to try to minimize travel amid the rapid spread of coronavirus variants.   Read more »

Thailand reports daily record of new coronavirus cases and new deaths

Reuters
Jul 31 09:20 AM

BANGKOK— Thailand reported on Saturday a daily record of 18,912 new coronavirus infections, bringing the country's total accumulated cases to 597,287.  Read more »

U.S. says seizes tanker used to evade North Korea sanctions

Reuters
Jul 31 07:27 AM

WASHINGTON— The U.S. Justice Department (DoJ) on Friday announced the seizure of a 2,734-ton tanker it said was owned and operated by a Singaporean national and used to make shipments of petroleum products to North Korea in violation of international sanctions. Read more »

UK virus cases rose after recent easing of rules - survey

Agence France-Presse
Jul 31 05:56 AM

LONDON - Coronavirus case numbers increased more than 15 percent across England in the most recent week measured, according to a weekly infection survey released Friday, after the government relaxed virus curbs. Read more »

Japan, US defense chiefs agree to bolster deterrence

Kyodo News
Jul 30 11:42 PM

Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi told reporters after the talks that he and USSecretary of Defense Lloyd Austin also exchanged views over the current situation in the East and South China seas, where China is expanding its military presence. Read more »

Getting a COVID-19 booster shot

Ronen Zvulun, Reuters
Jul 30 08:07 PM

Doctor Ziv Feldman receives a third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at the Sheba Medical Center in Ramat Gan, Israel on Friday Read more »

Israel's president gets third COVID-19 shot, urges boosters for over-60s

Stephen Farrell, Reuters
Jul 30 07:24 PM | Updated Jul 30 08:34 PM

JERUSALEM - Israeli President Isaac Herzog received a third shot of coronavirus vaccine on Friday, kicking off a campaign to give booster doses to people aged over 60 as part of efforts to slow the spread of the highly contagious Delta variant. Read more »

Australia sets 80% vaccine target to open borders

Agence France-Presse
Jul 30 07:14 PM

Australia will reopen its borders and end lockdowns when 80 percent of the population is fully vaccinated, Prime Minister Scott Morrison revealed Friday, sketching a long road out of "Fortress Australia" virus restrictions. Read more »

China battles biggest COVID-19 outbreak in months

Agence France-Presse
Jul 30 07:12 PM | Updated Jul 30 08:11 PM

Hundreds of thousands of people in China were in coronavirus lockdown Friday as the country battled its worst outbreak in months, while the United States intensified vaccination efforts in the face of a Delta variant-fueled surge. Read more »

Germany to require tests for all unvaccinated travelers

Agence France-Presse
Jul 30 06:22 PM

Anyone entering Germany from abroad will have to take a Covid-19 test from Sunday unless they are fully vaccinated or have recovered from the disease, Health Minister Jens Spahn said Friday. Read more »

4 more Japanese prefectures placed under COVID emergency amid Olympics

Kyodo News
Jul 30 06:20 PM

Japan decided Friday to expand its COVID-19 state of emergency to Osaka and three prefectures near Tokyo as a recent spike in coronavirus cases to record levels has raised fears that the country's medical system could collapse amid the Tokyo Olympics. Read more »