North Korean leader says there is ‘huge crisis’ in antivirus fight; Thailand confirms 53 deaths in 24 hours; Tokyo may extend coronavirus restrictions into Olympics period
- Australian state of Queensland says Pfizer vaccine supply will run out in days
- North Korea Covid outbreak fears after Kim Jong-un warns of ‘huge crisis’ in ‘antivirus fight’
- Brazil suspends Covaxin contract after ‘serious accusations’ of irregularities
- Business leaders arriving in England granted exemption from Covid quarantine
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8.00am BST
“It was a dangerous, false sense of security. Now a tragedy is unfolding,” – that’s Dr Johannes Marisa, president of the Medical and Dental Private Practitioners of Zimbabwe Association in Harare, who spoke to Associated Press as part of a report into Covid’s rising impact across Africa.
AP report that the delta variant has now been detected in at least 14 African countries including Congo, Mozambique, Namibia, Uganda, South Africa and Zimbabwe, and not just in the cities. Early in the pandemic many rural inhabitants had dismissed Covid as an urban problem.
7.48am BST
In Australia, multiple state governments have directly criticised the commonwealth’s new position on the AstraZeneca vaccine, with Queensland saying that it does “not want under 40s to get AstraZeneca” and Victoria accusing Scott Morrison of creating unnecessary confusion.
In a series of press conferences on Wednesday, Queensland, Victoria, New South Wales and Western Australia all distanced themselves from the prime minister’s suggestion that people aged under 40 should approach GPs for the AstraZeneca dose.
Related: Rift between states and Morrison government over AstraZeneca vaccine for under 40s grows
