schema:articleBody
| - Here are the latest developments in the coronavirus crisis: Saudi Arabia completes the observance of the hajj with only up to 10,000 Muslims taking part this year compared to last year's 2.5 million. The stripped down ritual, designed to limit the risk of infection, is the smallest in modern history. Australia's Victoria state imposes fresh, sweeping restrictions, including a curfew in Melbourne -- the country's second-largest city -- for the next six weeks, a ban on weddings, and schools and universities going back online in the coming days. Iran reports its highest single-day novel coronavirus infection count in nearly a month, warning that most of its provinces have been hit by a resurgence of the disease. The latest surge brings the total cases identified since late February to 309,437. The pandemic has killed at least 685,780 people worldwide since it surfaced in China late last year, with at least 17.8 million people infected, according to an AFP tally at 1100 GMT on Sunday based on official sources. The United States has the most deaths with 154,449, followed by Brazil with 93,563, Mexico 47,472, the United Kingdom with 46,193, and India with 37,364 fatalities. Austria's month-long festival celebrates its 100th anniversary, but with a reduced programme and strict safety measures, including masks for spectators until they are seated and its 80,000 tickets -- down from the usual 230,000 -- personalised to enable contact-tracing. South Africa has now registered more than 500,000 cases, the health ministry announces, making it by far the hardest hit country on the continent. More than a third of positive cases are in Gauteng province -- South Africa's financial hub and epicentre of the outbreak in the country. burs-jj/bsp
|