One day before the opening of the Olympic Games in Tokyo, the fourth person infected with Covid-19 was registered in the Olympic Village. However, representatives of the IOC and Olympic organizers claim that the situation is under control and that there will be no outbreaks. Meanwhile, England is celebrating the lifting of coronavirus restrictions, despite a resurgence of infections in the country. Saudi Arabia is preparing for the Hajj, which will include a limited number of screened and vaccinated pilgrims. And Australia deports a British journalist who claimed the lockdown was an international conspiracy.
The organizers of the Olympic Games and representatives of the IOC assure that they have taken all necessary security measures. The day before the opening of the Olympic Games in Tokyo, the fourth case of coronavirus was detected in the Olympic village. This time, a member of the Czech beach volleyball team was infected. Despite the latest incident (two South African soccer players and a person not directly involved in the competitions had previously tested positive), the organizers of the Games insist that the overall epidemiological situation in the Olympic Village remains normal. The official representative of the Olympic Games, Masa Takaya, confirmed that among the thousands of tests carried out on people directly involved in the Games, 61 cases of infection have been identified, which represents a very small percentage of the total number (about 20,000 athletes are participating in the Olympic Games). The chairman of the independent group of experts that makes recommendations to the IOC expressed confidence that the security system was working. “The number of infections is extremely low,” said Brian McCloskey, “certainly lower than expected, and in addition, all the measures taken should reduce the risk of infection spreading. All athletes undergo daily check-ups and are required to keep their distance and wear masks at all times when they are not competing, sleeping or eating. Surveys show that the majority of Japanese people are against holding the Olympics under the current conditions. Even Toyota, which is sponsoring the games, has decided not to broadcast any TV commercials related to the Olympics, and its management will not attend the opening ceremony. “Day of Freedom”?
We explain quickly, simply, and clearly what happened, why it matters, and what happens next. эпизоды – Episodes The end of the story: Podcast Advertising At midnight from Sunday to Monday, nearly all pandemic-related restrictions were lifted in England, including mandatory masks indoors, limits on the number of people allowed in bars and restaurants at the same time, and rules advising people not to gather in large groups. Gyms and stadiums, movie theaters and nightclubs are preparing for the influx of visitors. In some nightclubs, the parties started last night. At the same time, the infection rate in the country has increased after the previous relaxation of the coronavirus regime and now stands at about 50,000 new cases per day. The UK ranks seventh in the world in terms of both the number of infections (5.4 million) and deaths from coronavirus (129,000). And if projections are to be believed, the number of new daily infections will soon exceed the peak levels of the second wave that occurred earlier this year. At the same time, the UK is ahead of the rest of Europe in terms of vaccination rates, with 87% of the adult population having received at least one dose and 68% having received both doses of the vaccine, which provides additional and currently maximum protection.
Katie Hopkins has managed to make a name for herself in many places, and now – Australia. Australian authorities have ordered the immediate deportation of scandalous British journalist Katie Hopkins, who decided to brag about how she violated the rules of conduct during the pandemic. Katie, who was quarantined in one of the Sydney hotels, posted a video on social media promising to open the door and appear naked and without a mask in front of the hotel staff. This plan seemed quite feasible, considering that the journalist had arrived in Australia to film a television reality show, “Big Brother”. In her video, Katie also called lockdowns the greatest deception in human history. As a result, Katie Hopkins was denied participation in the show, her visa was revoked, and the representative of the Department of Home Affairs, Karen Andrews, called the journalist’s behavior a slap in the face to all Australians.
This year, the Hajj in Mecca was organized almost like a military operation. Coronavirus: In Tokyo, on the eve of the Olympic Games, people are considered infected; Britain celebrates the lifting of COVID restrictions. The annual holy Hajj in Mecca, which usually attracts more than two million Muslim pilgrims from around the world, will be severely curtailed this time due to the risk of spreading the coronavirus. This year, only 60,000 people will make the Hajj – all citizens or residents of Saudi Arabia between the ages of 18 and 65 who are fully vaccinated and do not suffer from chronic illnesses. Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam and is obligatory for all able-bodied men to perform at least once in their lifetime. Its organization and conduct is a matter of state prestige for the ruling dynasty of Saudi Arabia. Therefore, the decision to exclude pilgrims from abroad has greatly disappointed foreigners who wanted to visit the holy site. However, Saudi Arabian authorities are determined to repeat the success of last year, when only 10,000 people participated in the Hajj and no cases of coronavirus infection were recorded. To prevent the holy sites from becoming potential hotbeds of infection, authorities have decided to divide pilgrims into groups of 20. They will be issued with “smart hajj cards” that will allow them contactless access to hotels or dormitories, as well as buses that will transport pilgrims to the holy sites. Even the distribution of holy water from the Zamzam spring, which rises in the main mosque of Mecca Al-Haram, built around the holy Kaaba, is provided for.
Los Angeles returns masks, other cities in America may follow. While England celebrates the lifting of the COVID restrictions, the authorities in Scotland and Wales, which have the right to pursue independent health policies, have announced that they will maintain a number of restrictions, including the mandatory wearing of masks in indoor public places. Some European countries, including Spain and Greece, have had to reintroduce a number of restrictions in light of recent new outbreaks. For the countries of Southeast Asia, where the coronavirus has already claimed more than 4 million lives since 2019, the worst seems to be yet to come. One of the main epicenters is now considered to be Indonesia, which has even surpassed India and Brazil: on Friday, a record daily mortality rate was recorded there – 1205 people died. On Monday, a partial lockdown was imposed in Hanoi, and millions of residents in southern Vietnam were ordered not to leave their homes. In Myanmar, where hospitals are not functioning due to a prolonged strike by medical personnel protesting the military junta’s rule, volunteers are forced to go door-to-door collecting bodies of people who have died from the coronavirus. The situation in the United States has worsened. Despite the fact that nearly the majority of the adult population has received at least one dose of the vaccine, and despite several months of positive momentum in the decline of infections, the number of new infections there has jumped 135% in the last two weeks. Los Angeles, which has seen a sharp rise in cases, has reinstated mandatory mask use, and the chief medical officer of the United States warned Sunday that other cities may be forced to follow suit.