COVID-19

This comes after the government announced two more cases of Covid-19 in the community, two children - one a student - from a settlement in the capital Suva.

Education Minister Rosy Akbar said it is unfortunate that the details of the student were released and are now circulating on social media.

Ms Akbar said the ministry strives to protect the interest of all the children and she reminded the public to be mindful of the sensitivity surrounding this issue.

She urged people to refrain from sharing such confidential information.

It is the first positive test connected to the relay since it began March 25 from northeastern Fukushima prefecture.

Organisers say the 30-year-old policeman was assigned to control traffic on the April 17 leg in southwestern Kagawa prefecture. They said the officer developed symptoms and tested positive the next day. Local health authorities are investigating.

Officials say the policeman was wearing a mask and taking social-distancing precautions and other measures.

Health authorities have described the weekend rites attended by more than 500 people as a potential superspreader event.

They confirmed three new cases late on Tuesday, two of which were soldiers at a managed isolation quarantine facility (MIQ).

The third case reported is a woman in her 30s who is the daughter of a 53-year-old woman who worked as a maid at the same MIQ.

The maid had contracted the virus from a male soldier who authorities now believe had contracted Covid-19 while handling the baggage of two Fijian nationals who returned from India on 10 April.

In a note to the media about its updated travel guidance, it said the pandemic continued to "pose unprecedented risks to travellers".

The current US "Do Not Travel" advisory covers 34 out of 200 countries.

Covid-19 has now claimed more than three million lives worldwide - more than half a million of them in the US.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) warned the world was "approaching the highest rate of infection" so far, despite the global rollout of vaccination programmes.

One of the cases is classified as community transmission and the patient is the daughter of a hotel worker who was confirmed Covid-19 positive yesterday.

The hotel worker was based at a border quarantine facility.

Permanent Secretary for Health and Medical Services Dr James Fong confirmed the second community transmission case in a press conference this afternoon.

“Due to her extensive exposure with the public, this hotel staff, and now her daughter, has been the central focus of our contact tracing,” Dr Fong said.

Government offices and essential services, such as hospitals, pharmacies and grocers, will be open during the lockdown, which starts on Monday night.

The city had imposed a weekend curfew, but reported its highest single-day spike so far on Sunday - 24,462 cases.

India has been reeling from a deadly second wave since the start of April.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said the city had almost run out of beds at hospital intensive care units (ICUs) and that oxygen was in short supply.

The milestone comes the day after the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) warned the world was "approaching the highest rate of infection" so far.

India - experiencing a second wave - recorded more than 230,000 new cases on Saturday alone.

Almost 140 million cases have been recorded since the pandemic began.

WHO chief Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned on Friday that "cases and deaths are continuing to increase at worrying rates".

He added that "globally, the number of new cases per week has nearly doubled over the past two months".

Cuttitta had been hospitalised in Rome with Covid-19 and died on Sunday following complications from the virus.

The former prop played for the Italy side who stunningly beat Scotland in their first Six Nations match in 2000.

He was the Azzurri captain 22 times in 69 appearances from 1990-2000, including at the 1995 Rugby World Cup, and went on to become a scrum coach for Scotland from 2009-15.

Born in Italy, Cuttitta and his twin brother Marcello Cuttitta – who also played for the national team – grew up in South Africa.

Leausa Dr Take Naseri said this will allow time to double check if the 24,000 doses of the Oxford Astra Zeneca vaccine are all accounted for.

The first shipment for Samoa had arrived last Friday from Copenhagen via South Korea, one of the largest shipments of Covax doses to the Pacific to date.

Samoa's caretaker Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi officially launched the arrival of the vaccine on Monday.

Samoa is expecting the second shipment of the vaccine next month.

The territory returned to its Covid-free status after a four-week lockdown, but still required people to wear masks in public places.

As of yesterday morning, mass gatherings were again allowed, clearing the way for churches to have services for the first time in five weeks.

Boarding schools have been able to receive students and re-open today.

On 7 March, a cluster of local Covid-19 cases was detected, prompting an immediate sharp lockdown.

A total of 63 infections were recorded since then but none in the past week.