New measures, new reports and highlights: an update on the latest developments in the Covid 19 pandemic worldwide.

– Fall explosion in Belgium –

With an average of 8,000 new infections per day, Belgium has once again achieved a rate of spread of the virus that has not been reached in a year.

Hospital stays follow the same trend: there are 2,000 Covid patients in Belgian hospitals, a level the country has not seen since May.

On Wednesday, health ministers (federal and federal agencies) recommended booster vaccinations for everyone, not just those over 65 and caregivers. The terms of this “Generalization + Booster + Vaccination Plan” must be established by the end of November.

– USA: 900,000 children aged 5 to 11 years vaccinated –

Since the campaign for this age group started a week ago in the United States, around 900,000 American children ages 5-11 have received their first dose of Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine.

This is “a good start,” said Jeff Zients, White House pandemic coordinator. There are 28 million children between the ages of 5 and 11 in the United States.

– Germany: Pfizer for under 30s –

The German Vaccination Commission (STIKO) recommended on Wednesday that people under the age of 30 should be vaccinated with the only vaccine from Pfizer-BioNTech who are at risk of myocarditis caused by Moderna for this population group. This recommendation also applies to pregnant women.

– European treaty for Valneva –

The Franco-Austrian laboratory Valneva and the European Commission have announced that they will receive up to 60 million vaccine doses against Covid-19 by 2023.

– Shanghai Marathon postponed –

The Shanghai marathon scheduled for November 28, as well as the marathons in Beijing and Wuhan last month, have been postponed due to a limited rise in the Covid-19 epidemic in China, organizers said.

The number of contaminations in the country remains low – an average of 74 cases in the past seven days, according to official figures – but the Chinese authorities are pursuing a zero contamination policy within three months of the opening of the Beijing Winter Olympics (February 4) – 20).

– Rally without distancing: arrests in China –

Chinese police have ordered the pre-trial detention of three people presented as organizers of a large-screen broadcast of the League of Legends global video game final, the official press reported.

The eSports competition, held in Reykjavik, Iceland on Saturday, aired in a crowded area of ​​Wuhan (center) and drew at least 2,000 people, according to Chinese media. This massive rally was organized without permission and without distancing.

– Lions in Singapore tested positive –

Four lions from a wildlife park in Singapore tested positive for coronavirus after being infected by employees and experiencing symptoms such as coughing and sneezing, authorities said.

With around 2,000 to 3,000 new cases per day, the Southeast Asian city-state is facing its worst wave of contagion since the beginning of the pandemic.

– More than five million dead –

The pandemic has killed more than 5,062,911 people worldwide since the end of December 2019, according to an AFP report on Wednesday in the middle of the day.

The United States has the highest number of deaths (757,409), ahead of Brazil (609,756), India (461,849), Mexico (290,110), and Russia (250,454).

Taking into account the excess mortality directly and indirectly linked to Covid-19, the WHO estimates that the toll of the pandemic could be two to three times higher than officially determined.

burx-paj-acm / cds / mr