Coronavirus updates, December 8: Latest news on the COVID-19 pandemic from Pakistan and around the world

Pakistan's COVID-19 tally rose to 423,179 on Tuesday after 3,885 new cases were detected in the past 24 hours across the country.

The province-wise break up of the total number of cases as of 9:00 am, December 8, is as follows:

Total confirmed cases: 423,179

• AJK: 7,390

• Balochistan: 17,501

• Gilgit-Baltistan: 4,746

• Islamabad Capital Territory: 33,061

• Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: 50,078

• Punjab: 121,191

• Sindh: 186,212

Deaths: 8,487

• Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: 1,419

• Punjab: 3,218

• Sindh: 3,060

• Balochistan: 169

• Gilgit-Baltistan: 98

• Islamabad Capital Territory: 341

• AJK: 182

More than 67,559,804 infections have been confirmed globally with over 1,543,503 deaths, according to the John Hopkins University tally.

End of live updates for December 8

11:55pm — Brasilia, Brazil — Pfizer says could vaccinate a 'couple of million' Brazilians in first quarter

The chief executive of Pfizer Brasil, Carlos Murillo, said that "a couple of million" Brazilians could receive the company's COVID-19 vaccine in the first quarter of 2021 if Brazil authorizes emergency use.

Murillo said the terms of an agreement to sell Brazil 70 million doses of the vaccines could be settled this week. Speaking remotely to a Congressional hearing on the pandemic, he explained Pfizer's plan to use containers of dry ice to deliver the vaccine that needs to be stored at ultra cold temperatures.

11:36pm — Rabat, Morocco — King Mohammad says Covid-19 vaccine will be free to all citizens

Morocco's King Mohammed VI ordered that all Moroccans should receive a coronavirus vaccine for free, the Royal palace said on Tuesday.

Morocco plans to roll out China's Sinopharm vaccine in the coming weeks as soon as its phase three trials are over, Prime Minister Saad Dine El Otmani told Reuters last month.

The country has also ordered doses from AstraZeneca and is in talks with other vaccine developers, he said.

11:05pm — Zurich, Switzerland — Swiss plan to ban public events to contain worsening COVID-19 situation

Switzerland plans to ban all public events apart from church services and legislative meetings and further limit private gatherings after Dec. 12, as it said that the COVID-19 situation was deteriorating as infections swell.

It is starting talks with the nation's 26 cantons over the proposals, as it prepares for the new restrictions.

The announcement came as the Federal Office of Public Health reported 92 more deaths, taking the death toll in Switzerland and neighbouring Liechtenstein to 5,116. The number of cases rose by 4,262 cases to 358,568, it said.

The government also plans to order restaurants, shops and markets to close at 7 pm through Jan. 20 in an effort to restrict the spread of the virus. It also aims to restrict the number of people who could meet in households to five.

10:41pm — Copenhagen, Iceland — Govt to cautiously ease some restrictions after infections drop

Iceland said it would relax some measures aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus after seeing a slight fall in new infections.

Public pools and cinemas will be allowed to open at reduced capacity, while shops may allow in up to 100 people, depending on the size of the shop, the Ministry of Health said in a statement.

Iceland has an infection incidence of 46.1 per 100,000 on a two-week average. Only 28 people have died with the virus in Iceland, out of 5,506 infections in total.

"It is therefore clear that we have managed to control the pandemic to a reasonable extent at the moment" Iceland's chief epidemiologist said, calling the situation "delicate".

9:25pm — Rome, Italy — 634 COVID-19 deaths reported on Tuesday, 14,842 new cases emerge

Italy reported 634 coronavirus-related deaths against 528 the day before, the health ministry said, while the daily tally of new infections rose to 14,842 from 13,720.

The first Western country hit by the virus, Italy has seen 61,240 COVID-19 fatalities since its outbreak emerged in February, the second highest toll in Europe after Britain. It has also registered 1.757 million cases to date.

There were 149,232 swabs carried out in the past day, up from a previous 111,217, the ministry said.

8:31pm — Berlin, Germany — Germany inches towards stricter COVID-19 lockdown

Germany inched towards stricter measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus, as an eastern region said it would close schools and most businesses and the health minister warned a partial lockdown had not stopped the disease.

Europe's biggest economy is struggling to squash new infections in a second wave of COVID-19 that is both proving far more difficult to tame than the first one and extracting a heavier human toll as daily deaths hit record highs.

The governor of the eastern state of Saxony, which has the highest seven-day incidence rate per 100,000 residents anywhere in Germany, said schools and non-essential businesses will be shut from Dec. 14 as hospitals struggle to take in patients.

"The situation in hospitals is not only tense, it is extremely dangerous at many locations, partly because a large number of beds are occupied by COVID-19 patients," Saxony Governor Michael Kretschmer said during a news conference.

7:47pm — Mexico City, Mexico — Govt aims to begin vaccinating 125,000 health workers by year end

Mexico aims to begin the COVID-19 vaccination process for 125,000 people in December, Mexico's deputy health minister said, apparently scaling back its earlier plan to apply the first vaccine doses for 250,000 people by end of the year.

Mexico's Deputy Health Minister Hugo Lopez Gatell said Mexico will prioritize health workers and elderly people to receive the first 250,000 doses of the two-shot Pfizer vaccine in December and January, with the second phase of Mexico's vaccination program slated to begin in February.

6:53pm — Stockholm, Sweden — 18,820 new COVID-19 cases since registered Friday

Sweden, whose unorthodox pandemic strategy has placed it in the global spotlight, registered 18,820 new coronavirus cases since Friday, Health Agency statistics showed.

The increase compared with 17,629 cases recorded the corresponding period one week a ago.

6:34pm — Amsterdam, Netherlands — Dutch coronavirus cases rise for first week since October

The number of new coronavirus cases in the Netherlands has resumed rising after weeks of declines, the country's health authorities said on Tuesday.

There were 43,103 new cases registered in the week ended Dec. 8, the National Institute for Health said in its weekly update, up from 33,949 in the week ended Dec. 1. 

6:09pm — Karachi, Pakistan — Sindh registers 21 deaths, 1,472 new infections

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah has said that the province registered 21 deaths and 1,472 new infections in the past 24 hours.

The chief minister said that with the new infections, overall cases had risen to 187,684 and the death toll had bumped up to 2,081.

5:44pm — New Delhi, India — Govt regulator may authorise some COVID-19 vaccines in weeks

India's government regulator could grant a license to some developers of COVID-19 vaccines in the next few weeks, the country's top health official said.

Six vaccines, including Astra Zeneca's Covidshield and Bharat Biotech's Covaxin, are in trial stages, Federal health secretary Rajesh Bhushan told a press conference.

Bhushan said Bharat Biotech had sought emergency-use authorization from India's drug regulator for its COVID-19 vaccine. Pfizer and Astra Zeneca have already applied for emergency-use authorisation in India.

5:11pm — Seoul, S Korea — Govt to buy millions of coronavirus vaccine doses but sees no need to hurry

South Korea said on Tuesday it had signed deals to provide coronavirus vaccines for 44 million people next year but it would not hurry inoculation to allow more time to observe potential side effects.

Its cautious approach comes as the country of almost 52 million people battles surging COVID-19 infections that health authorities say threaten to overwhelm the medical system.

Other countries are moving ahead to grant emergency use approval for the vaccines in a bid to contain virus transmission. Britain began rolling out Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine on Tuesday, and the United States and India have launched regulatory reviews on some vaccine candidates.

The South Korean government has arranged to buy 20 million doses each from AstraZeneca Plc, Pfizer Inc, and Moderna Inc, and another 4 million doses from Johnson & Johnson's Janssen, enough to cover up to 34 million people, Health Minister Park Neung-hoo told a briefing.

4:00pm — Sister Joanna Sloan first person in Northern Ireland to receive Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine

3:45pm — Geneva, Switzerland — WHO says immune barrier from vaccines "still far off"

A World Health Organization official said on Monday that only public health measures, not vaccines, can prevent a new surge of COVID-19 cases as the first vaccines are administered in Britain.

"Vaccines are a great tool, they will be very helpful, but the effect of the vaccine in providing some kind of immune barrier is still far off," said Dr. Margaret Harris in response to a question at a Geneva briefing about whether the vaccines would come in time to prevent a third wave of cases in Europe.

"The things that must be done to prevent an increase, an uptick, a surge or whatever you want to call it are the public health measures," she added.

3:30pm — Islamabad, Pakistan — Govt urges people to wear masks

Government of Pakistan on Tuesday urged people to wear masks as the second coronavirus wave spreads in the country. 

Taking to Twitter, the government urged people to wear masks, maintain social distancing and keep washing their hands.

2:45pm — Warsaw, Poland — Poland has bought over COVID-19 vaccine 60 mln doses, PM says

Poland has bought over 60 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines from six producers, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Tuesday.

"We are secured - and now is the time for a great challenge, which is the implementation of the National COVID-19 Vaccination Programme," he wrote in a Facebook post.

2:30pm — Peshawar, Pakistan — Authorities fine 44 for not wearing mask

District Administration in Peshawar fined 44 citizens for not wearing a face mask while being outside their house.

The authorities also sealed four restaurants on Peshawar’s Ring Road for violating the coronavirus SOPS and a hotel at the GT Road. 

2:15pm — Lahore, Pakistan — Smart lockdown imposed 55 areas of Lahore 

A smart lockdown imposed in 55 areas of Lahore, announced Secretary for Primary and Secondary Healthcare Department Muhammad Usman.

The secretary said that the smart lockdown has been imposed in areas where the coronavirus cases were rising.

2:00pm — Berlin, Germany — Germany may need tougher COVID-19 curbs before Christmas, minister says

Germany might tighten restrictions to curb the spread of the coronavirus, Health Minister Jens Spahn said, as a partial lockdown and social distancing rules in place since the start of November have slowed, but not stopped the disease spreading.

Chancellor Angela Merkel told party colleagues on Monday that existing lockdown measures in place would not be sufficient to get the European Union's most populous country through the winter, participants at the meeting said.

"A short and comprehensive approach to really make a difference is probably more successful," Spahn told public broadcaster Phoenix, according to comments distributed late on Monday.

"If we don't get there within the next one or two weeks until Christmas, we have to discuss it," he added.

Broadcaster RBB cited Brandenburg state premier Dietmar Woidke as saying the federal government and states would discuss tighter measures this week to suppress the COVID-19 virus.

1:30pm — Moscow, Russia — Russia reports 26,097 new coronavirus cases, 562 deaths

Russia confirmed 26,097 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours on Tuesday, including 5,232 in Moscow, pushing the national tally to 2,515,009.

Authorities said 562 people had died overnight, taking the official death toll to 44,159. 

1:15pm — Schools not ‘main drivers’ of coronavirus among children: UNICEF says

Countries fighting the coronavirus should not impose nationwide or large-scale school closures, which is the wrong response and compounds the societal cost of the disease, with 320 million children locked out of school worldwide at the start of December, the UN children’s agency.

“What we have learned about schooling during the time of COVID is clear: the benefits of keeping schools open, far outweigh the costs of closing them, and nationwide closures of schools should be avoided at all costs”, Robert Jenkins, UNICEF Global Chief of Education, said in a statement on Tuesday.

Closing schools did not help in the fight against COVID-19, but simply removed a system that provides children with support, food and safety as well as learning, UNICEF said.

Instead of shutting them, governments should prioritize school reopening and make classrooms as safe as possible.

“Evidence shows that schools are not the main drivers of this pandemic. Yet, we are seeing an alarming trend whereby governments are once again closing down schools as a first recourse rather than a last resort. In some cases, this is being done nationwide, rather than community by community, and children are continuing to suffer the devastating impacts on their learning, mental and physical well-being and safety”, Jenkins said.

1:00pm — London, UK — British grandma is first in world to get Pfizer vaccine outside trial

Margaret Keenan, a 90-year-old grandmother from Britain, has become the first person in the world to receive the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine outside of a trial following its clinical approval.

An early riser, Keenan received the jab at her local hospital in Coventry, central England, on Tuesday morning at 0631 GMT.

12:30pm — Berlin, Germany — Germany's confirmed coronavirus cases rise by 14,054

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany increased by 14,054 to 1,197,709, data from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases showed on Tuesday. The reported death toll rose by 423 to 19,342, the tally showed.

12:15pm — Mumbai, India — India reports lowest daily rise in coronavirus cases since July 10

India reported 26,567 new coronavirus infections, data from the health ministry showed on Tuesday, the lowest daily increase since July 10, according to a Reuters tally.

Daily cases have been falling in India since hitting a peak in September. The country has 9.7 million cases, second-highest caseload in the world after the United States.

Deaths rose by 385, the health ministry said, with the total now at 140,958.

12:00pm — Monterrey, Mexico — Mexico registers 6,399 new coronavirus cases, 357 more deaths

Mexico's Health Ministry on Monday reported 6,399 new cases of coronavirus infection and an additional 357 fatalities, bringing the country's totals to 1,182,249 cases and 110,074 deaths.

The government says the real number of infected people is likely significantly higher than the confirmed cases.

11:45am — Opposition actions like throwing oil at burning fire: PTI senator 

PTI Senator Faisal Javed Khan said on Tuesday that opposition’s actions amid the second wave of the coronavirus was like throwing oil at a burning fire.

The senator, who is considered a close aide of the PM, said that the coronavirus cases and the death toll is increasing rapidly, adding that the second wave was proving to be more dangerous.

“In the last 24 hours 89 deaths were reported [due to coronavirus]. Holding a public gathering in such a situation will be mass murder,” said the senator. 

11:30am — Seoul, South Korea — South Korea reports 594 new coronavirus cases

South Korea reported 594 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said, another triple-digit daily increase that authorities say threatens to overload the medical system.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in has called for expanded coronavirus testing and more thorough tracing as the country struggles to control its latest and largest wave of infections. 

11:15am — Govt imposing smart lockdown to avoid complete lockdown: Dr Akram 

Vice-Chancellor of the University of Health Sciences Dr Javed Akram said that the government is imposing smart lockdowns so that there is no need for a full lockdown.

Dr Akram also said that it was not possible to impose a complete lockdown considering how the people are of the country. He also shared that a complete lockdown would severely affect daily wage earners.

Speaking to Geo Pakistan, Dr Akram said that Pakistan was also developing a plan for the distribution of the coronavirus vaccine.

11:00am — Shanghai, China — China reports 12 new COVID-19 cases vs 15 a day earlier

China reported 12 new COVID-19 cases on Dec. 7, down from 15 cases a day earlier, the national health authority said on Tuesday.

The National Health Commission said in a statement 10 of the new cases were imported infections originating from overseas. The number of new asymptomatic cases, which China does not classify as confirmed cases, fell to five from six cases a day earlier.

The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in mainland China now stands at 86,646, while the death toll remained unchanged at 4,634.

10:45am — Brasilia, Brazil — Brazil coronavirus death toll tops 177,000

Brazil reported 20,371 additional confirmed coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, and 376 deaths from COVID-19, its Health Ministry said on Monday.

The South American country has now registered 6,623,911 cases since the pandemic began, while its official death toll has risen to 177,317, according to ministry data. Brazil has the world's third worst outbreak after the United States and India. 

10:30am — Karachi, Pakistan — Sindh recorded over 7,000 new cases in first week of Dec compared to Nov 

Sindh reported 7,000 more cases of coronavirus in Sindh in the first week of December compared to the same period in November, said the provincial health department on Tuesday.

Sindh reported 11,952 coronavirus cases in the first week of December compared to the 3,691 new cases in the first week of November.

The health department said that the first week of December also saw a 35% increase in deaths due to coronavirus in the first week of the ongoing month.

In the first week of December Sindh recorded 98 deaths due to coronavirus while in the same period of last month the province had recorded 61 deaths.

Meanwhile, the positivity ratio has risen from 3.313% to 8.53%.

10:00am — Lahore, Pakistan — Shops, marriage halls sealed for SOPs violations

The city district administration conducted a crackdown on those involved in violation of the coronavirus-related standard operating procedures (SOPs) and sealed 59 markets and shops, 28 restaurants and 19 marriage halls.

A spokesperson said on Monday the monitoring team was headed by Lahore Deputy Commissioner Mudassar Riaz, while all additional deputy commissioner, assistant commissioner were present in the field to check markets of the area. The DC Lahore said that 59 markets and shopping malls, 28 restaurants and hotels, and 19 marriage halls were sealed over SOPs violation.

9:45am — Lahore, Pakistan — Apex committee resolves strict compliance of corona SOPs

Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar chaired the apex committee meeting at his office on Monday which was attended by Corps Commander Lahore Lt-Gen Majid Ehsan, GOC 10-Division Maj-Gen Muhammad Aneeq-ur-Rehman Malik, DG Rangers Punjab Maj-Gen Muhammad Amir Majeed and high ranking military officials.Provincial Ministers Raja Basharat, Dr Yasmin Rashid, SACM Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan, chief secretary, IG police, ACS and medical experts also attended the meeting.

The meeting expressed serious concern over non-implementation of corona SOPs and agreed to make concerted efforts for its effective implementation. 

Strict action will have to be taken if the same situation persists and the military, as well as civil administration will jointly continue striving for saving lives. 

Resources will be fully utilised for the treatment of corona patients, it decided. 

The meeting resolved strict compliance of face masks at public places, offices and legal action will be initiated in case of any violation.

It also dilated upon the proposal of imposing fine for SOPs' violation at public places and decided to implement closure timings of markets. 

9:30am — Karachi, Pakistan — Three Do Darya restaurants sealed for violating SOPs

On directions from Karachi Commissioner Iftikhar Ali Shallwani, restaurants at Do Darya were sealed on Sunday night for violating the standard operating procedures (SOPs) announced by the Sindh government to check the spread of the coronavirus.

According to details shared by the commissioner office, Additional Deputy Commissioner I District South Junaid Khan sealed Al Habib Restaurant, Kabaabjees Restaurant and Al Sajjad Restaurant on Sunday night.

The restaurants were sealed for violating the timing and social distancing SOPs issued by the provincial government. 

9:00am — Islamabad, Pakistan — Pakistan records highest single-day death toll in 5 months

Pakistan's coronavirus death toll rose by 89 in 24 hours for the first time in five months as the country struggles to contain the second wave of COVID-19 infections, data issued by the National Command and Operations Centre showed on Monday.

Both Sindh and Punjab recorded 41 new deaths while six died of coronavirus in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and one in Azad Jammu and Kashmir. Balochistan and Gilgit Baltistan reported no deaths in the past 24 hours.

With 2,885 new infections, the number of coronavirus cases reported across the country reached 423,179 - out of which 44,218 cases are active. At least 2,486 patients are under critical care with 336 on ventilators.

The case positivity rate has shot up to 8.58% with the highest COVID-19 prevalence observed in Karachi as 21.80% of the PCR tests conducted in the past 24 hours detected SARS-CoV-2, followed by 18.31% in Mirpur and 16% in Muzaffarabad. Hyderabad's positivity rate has fallen to 9.15% and Lahore's to 5.98% while Rawalpindi recorded 8.51% and 14.91%.

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