Commuters wear protective face masks in a covered walkway during rush hour in Jakarta, Indonesia, on July 8, 2020. (PHOTO / BLOOMBERG)

TOKYO / SYDNEY / BENGALURU / CAIRO - Indonesia reported a record jump in daily coronavirus infections as a military academy and an industrial area emerged as the nation’s newest clusters, which President Joko Widodo called a “red signal.”

There were 2,657 new cases confirmed in the past 24 hours, taking the total to 70,736, health ministry said Thursday, while 58 more people succumbed to the disease, raising the death toll to 3,414. Indonesia has the highest number of cases and fatalities in Southeast Asia.

West Java, adjoining capital Jakarta and the most-populous province, reported 962 new cases after authorities found two clusters of infections. Both the areas have been isolated and under control, according to Achmad Yurianto, spokesman for the government task force.

Indonesia has struggled to stem the spread of the pandemic after easing of social distancing rules to allow resumption of economic activities triggered a surge in infections. Jokowi, as the president is commonly known, said relaxing of mobility rules should be carefully weighed against health and economic considerations.

The pandemic has hit Indonesia harder than the 1997 Asian financial crisis, battering small and big businesses alike, Jokowi said last month. The president has earmarked 695.2 trillion rupiah (US$48 billion) in fiscal stimulus to help cushion the blow of the pandemic. He’s also abandoned a fiscal deficit ceiling of 3 percent of gross domestic product, with his government pushing the central bank to finance a large part of the spending.

Jakarta reported 284 new cases in the past 24 hours, taking the total to 13,488, trailing only East Java, which confirmed 517 new infections. West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil said the majority of the new cases in the province was from a single cluster which has been quarantined with authorities ordering extensive testing of residents.

A couple wearing face masks to protect against the spread of the new coronavirus walk at park in Yokohama near Tokyo, July 8, 2020. (PHOTO / AP)

Japan

There is no need to reintroduce a state of emergency, Japan's top government spokesman said on Thursday when asked about a record one-day rise in Tokyo coronavirus cases. 

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told reporters there were 224 new cases of novel coronavirus infection in Tokyo on Thursday. That marked a new daily record in Japan's capital since the crisis began.

The capital has continued to grapple with a resurgence of cases since the government's emergency declaration over the virus was completely lifted on May 25.

Tokyo's ongoing virus resurgence has seen many of those testing positive for the pneumonia-causing virus being younger people in their 20s and 30s, Tokyo metropolitan government officials said.

The Tokyo government will offer subsidies to nightliffe establishments in stricken areas that close because of the coronavirus, Asahi reported, citing an unidentified official. Outlets that close for 10 days or more will receive 500,000 yen (US$4,660), according to the report.

Nationwide, Japan has had more than 20,000 confirmed cases and 980 deaths so far.

Australia

Australia's second-most populous state will relax restrictions on many of the 3,000 people locked down in nine public-housing towers despite surging numbers of COVID-19 cases, state premier Daniel Andrews said on Thursday. 

Victoria state on Saturday confined residents of the towers in their homes amid a spike in COVID-19 cases, prompting widespread criticism from residents.

Melbourne began a six-week lockdown on Thursday as states around the country tightened internal borders to prevent a second wave sweeping the country. 

Australia has avoided the high casualty numbers of other countries to the COVID-19 pandemic, but an outbreak in Melbourne prompted the state of Victoria to impose "self isolate" orders for the city's estimated five million. 

Victoria on Thursday reported 165 new infections have been detected in the last 24 hours, an increase on the previous day's 134 cases. Other states and territories have recorded few or zero cases in recent weeks and are continuing to reopen their economies, but Prime Minister Scott Morrison told residents not to become complacent. 

The northern state of Queensland said it would ban non-residents arriving from Victoria. It will open its borders to people from other states and territories on Friday.

Bangladesh

The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Bangladesh Thursday reached 175,494 as 3,360 new infections were confirmed in the last 24 hours.

Senior Health Ministry official Nasima Sultana said in a briefing on Thursday afternoon that 3,360 new COVID-19 positive cases and 41 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours.

India

Cipla Ltd has priced its generic version of remdesivir, Cipremi, at 4,000 rupees (US$53.34) per 100 mg vial, the Indian drugmaker said on Wednesday, making it among the lowest priced versions of the COVID-19 treatment available so far globally. 

Cipla had earlier said pricing would not exceed 5,000 rupees. On Tuesday, Sovereign Pharma, which is manufacturing and packaging the drug for Cipla, said it had dispatched the first batch. 

India's federal health ministry Thursday morning said 487 new deaths due to COVID-19, besides fresh 24,879 positive cases, were reported during the past 24 hours across the country, taking the number of deaths to 21,129 and total cases to 767,296.

A resident gestures from a window at one of nine public housing estates locked down due a spike in COVID-19 coronavirus numbers in Melbourne on July 6, 2020. (WILLIAM WEST / AFP)

Iran

Iran on Wednesday reported 2,691 new COVID-19 cases over the past 24 hours, taking the total confirmed infections in the country to 248,379, remaining the hardest-hit state in the Middle East.

Sima Sadat Lari, spokeswoman for Iran's Ministry of Health and Medical Education, said 153 people died overnight, raising the death toll over the virus to 12,084.
Iraq

Iraqi Health Ministry recorded 2,741 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number of infections nationwide to 67,442.

The ministry also confirmed 94 more deaths, raising the death toll from the infectious virus to 2,779 in the country.

Israel

Israel's Ministry of Health reported 1,335 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, the second highest daily rise since the pandemic outbreak in the country in late February.

This brings the total coronavirus cases to 33,557, of which 14,875 are active cases.

The number of death cases rose from 344 to 346, while the number of patients in serious condition increased from 86 to 113, out of 405 patients currently hospitalized.

Kyrgyzstan 

Kyrgyzstan added 361 confirmed COVID-19 cases Thursday, taking its total to 8,847.

 Among the newly infected, 83 are medical workers, taking the total number of infected medical workers to 1,370, including 532 recoveries, Ainura Akmatova, head of the public health care department of the country's health ministry, told a daily news briefing.

To cope with the shortage of doctors in the country, Akmatova said the health ministry has called back medical workers on leave, adding that around 200 emergency physicians are currently under observation due to the coronavirus.

Akmatova said Kyrgyzstan is taking measures to prevent the deterioration of the national situation in the fall and winter.

Mongolia

Mongolia has reported two more COVID-19 recoveries, taking its total recoveries to 197, the country's National Center for Communicable Diseases (NCCD) said Thursday. Meanwhile, the country tested 701 people for the virus at four laboratories in the last 24 hours, with all results returning negative, the NCCD said in a statement. The Asian country has confirmed 227 COVID-19 cases so far, with no local transmissions or deaths.

New Zealand

New Zealand reported three new case of COVID-19 on Thursday, bringing the number of active cases in the country to 24, all in managed isolation or quarantine facilities, according to the Ministry of Health.

It has been 69 days since the last case of COVID-19 was acquired locally from an unknown source, said a ministry's statement.

Pakistan

Pakistan’s government plans to reopen the schools nationwide as the authorities estimate the rate of infections from coronavirus are declining.

The administrations will have to follow strict “standard operating procedures” set by the government, Shafqat Mahmood, the education minister said, at a news conference Thursday.

Pakistan’s COVID-19 cases surged in June before showing a decline this month encouraging the government to open the businesses and offices gradually. 

The south Asian nation, which had become a hotspot for the pandemic earlier, recorded a total of 3,359 cases in last 24 hours taking the total infected people to 240,848. The latest to test positive for the virus are health minister Zafar Mirza and foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi.

Palestine

Palestine tightened the precautionary measures all over the West Bank on Wednesday after recording two new COVID-19 deaths, raising the total fatalities to 24 since March 5.

On Wednesday, a full lockdown dominated the West Bank after the Palestinian government decided earlier to extend it for another five days to prevent the spread of the deadly virus.

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Qatar

Qatar's Health Ministry on Wednesday announced 608 new COVID-19 cases, raising the total number of infections in the Gulf state to 101,553.

The death toll rose to 138 and the total recoveries reached 96,107, the ministry said in a statement.

Infected patients are given Remdesivir, a drug undergoing trials, at a hospital in Wuhan, Hubei province, in February. (CHEN ZHUO / FOR CHINA DAILY)

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia registered on Wednesday 3,036 new coronavirus cases, increasing the accumulated infections to 220,144.

The recoveries also rose to 158,050 with the reporting of 3,211 new recovered cases, the Saudi Press Agency reported. 

The kingdom also recorded 42 fatalities in the last 24 hours, bringing the death toll to 2,059.

South Korea

Just one person in a South Korean survey of more than 3,000 people showed neutralizing antibodies to the novel coronavirus, health authorities said on Thursday, indicating the virus has not spread widely in the community. 

While the sample size is small it is believed to be a reliable indicator of a low infection rate among the 51 million people of a country held up as a coronavirus mitigation success story.

South Korea reported 50 more cases of the COVID-19 as of 0:00 am Thursday local time compared to 24 hours ago, raising the total number of infections to 13,293.

The daily caseload moved between 40 and 70 for the past week due to the continued small cluster infections and imported cases.

Of the new cases, 22 were imported from overseas, lifting the combined figure to 1,768. It continued to increase in double digits for the past two weeks.

Two more deaths were confirmed, leaving the death toll at 287. The total fatality rate stood at 2.16 percent.

The Philippines

The number of COVID-19 cases in the Philippines surged to 51,754 after the Department of Health (DOH) reported 1,395 new cases on Thursday.

The DOH said that the number of recoveries further rose to 12,813 after 225 more patients have survived the disease.

No additional death was reported. The death toll remains at 1,314, the DOH said.

Turkey

Turkey's COVID-19 cases increased by 1,041 the same day, while the total cases climbed to 208,938, Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said.

Meanwhile, 22 people died in the past 24 hours, taking the death toll to 5,282, and 2,219 patients recovered in the last 24 hours, raising the total recoveries to 187,511 in Turkey.

Vaccination researches in Turkey continue on animal trials, the minister said, noting that the process has been successful. "I think that we can start clinical studies with the ministry of health in September or October."

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UAE

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced 445 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 53,045.

UAE's Ministry of Health and Prevention said 568 more patients have recovered from the virus, taking the tally of recoveries in the UAE to 42,282, according to the ministry.

It also confirmed one more death, pushing the country's death toll to 327.

Yemen

The total number of COVID-19 cases in Yemen's government-controlled provinces increased to 1,318, as 21 new cases were confirmed.

A shipment of COVID-19 protective equipment landed at Sanaa Airport on Wednesday, health authorities said.

The shipment, carrying 18 tons of supplies, was delivered by the United Nations Children's Fund to help curb the spread of COVID-19 in the war-ravaged country.