Young Spaniards over the age of six must wear a mask at school; Midwest U.S. states report record counts; The UK has recorded the highest levels since 12 June. Follow the latest updates
WHO is setting up a committee of independent experts to convert regulations to report a foreign fitness emergency, after complaining about its reaction to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The global firm declared a foreign scarcity public fitness (USPPI) emergency on January 30 due to the new coronavirus, when respiratory disease inflamed less than a hundred more people outdoors in China and caused no deaths beyond its borders.
But the existing International Health Regulations (IHR) governing the preparedness and response to fitness emergencies, there are no intermediate or declining warning levels in a full USPPI, either globally or regionally.
WHO experts met on 22 and 23 January, but at that time did conclude that the epidemic deserved the highest warning point for a full USPPI.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Thursday at a virtual press convention that the Covid-19 pandemic had been a “litmus test” for countries such as the IHR.
Tedros that even before the coronavirus pandemic, emergencies such as the Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo had IHR failures.
Such emergencies have shown that “some elements of the IHR may require review, adding the binary nature of the (warning) mechanism,” Tedros said.
The committee will provide an activity report to the World Health Assembly, WHO’s member state decision-making body in November, and a full report to the Assembly in May.
One of Europe’s top flagship events, the Tour de France, is in doubt after the start of the race, the Maritime Alps, set on red alert.
Jeremy Whittle of the Guardian reports that tensions surrounding the race increased further on Thursday night after the Lotto-Soudal team announced that two members of his team’s aid staff had tested “non-negative” for Covid-19 and had been eliminated from Nice. “Safety remains priority number one,” he said.
“Only the global wars stopped the Tour de France,” said Tour director Christian Prudhomme in March this year, but the development of considerations on the possibility of moving forward with this year’s career led to an interrogation through Prime Minister Array Jean Castex, through newshounds on Thursday.
“We’ve taken a lot of precautions and fitness protocols and I remind you that this is an event,” Castex said. “The places where the virus spreads and where there is transmission have no organization. The Tour has an organizer.”
Confirming that Nice is one of 19 new red alert regions, Castex said that “the pandemic is gaining ground and it is time to intervene,” adding: “France will have to do everything it can to avoid a new blockade. “
Uncertainty about the race invading the bubble of Grand Départ runners, some groups have hinted that they will run day after day, while others have insisted that it will replace their long-term tactics.
“We don’t have a strategic plan to be at the forefront in case the race stops after a week and a half,” said Tom Dumoulin, former Giro d’Italia champion and Primoz Roglic teammate.
On Thursday, France reported its highest recorded number and a new record after closing, with 6,111 instances. The highest daily total of 7,578 established on March 30.
You can read Jeremy’s full on the tour below.
Hello and welcome to the Guardian’s ongoing policy on the coronavirus pandemic, with me, Alison Rourke.
The Tour de France, scheduled to begin in Nice on Saturday, is in doubt after the Maritime Alps region, home to the early stages of the race, was put on red alert due to the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. Stages 1 and 2 end in the centre of Nice on Saturday and Sunday and will surely attract a lot of road fans. They also come with several major mountain ascents to the interior of the city. French Prime Minister Jean Castex said “many precautions” and fitness protocols had been implemented, adding that “France will have to do everything it can to avoid a further blockage.”
On Thursday, France reported its historic moment of registered instances and a new roof after the blockade. In the following 24 hours, 6,111 cases have been recorded, the point from the end of the confinement and the moment since the peak of 7,578 reached on 30 March at the height of the epidemic.
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