Women wearing face masks walk on a street in Tehran, capital of Iran, on Nov 8, 2020. (ATTA KENARE / AFP)

JERUSALEM / ANKARA / SINGAPORE / KUALA LUMPUR / BANGKOK / BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN / DHAKA / KABUL / JAKARTA / DUBAI / COLOMBO / HANOI / YANGON – Iran plans to more than double the number of coronavirus tests it carries out daily to 100,000, Health Minister Saeed Namaki said on Tuesday, as the total number of detected cases surpassed 700,000 in the Middle East's worst-affected country.

Both the daily death toll and the number of new cases were near record highs. The health ministry's spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari told state TV that 453 more people had died in the past 24 hours, pushing the toll to 39,202. She said 10,339 new cases were detected, lifting the tally to 703,288.

Iran's Minister of Interior Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli confirmed on Monday that a curfew in the new cities would be imposed for all businesses except level one businesses, semi-official news agency Tasnim reported. Starting on Tuesday, for one month, all non-essential businesses must close at 6 pm in major cities, state media reported.

The minister also announced a plan to increase the number of tests and general screening of the population on a neighborhood-by-neighborhood basis, starting on Tuesday in the western province of Kermanshah.

Lebanon

Lebanon plans to impose a full lockdown from Nov 14 until the end of this month to give the health sector, already reeling under strain from the financial crisis, time to avoid a collapse as the country witnesses a spike in the coronavirus cases.

“Today, we have reached a red line with the number of cases and a very dangerous phase amid the inability of hospitals, both public and private, to receive critical cases,” outgoing Premier Hassan Diab said.

The government had been trying to avoid a total lockdown to spare businesses the pain of closure, imposing a partial one that officials say failed to stem the outbreak. 

Lebanon has so far reported about 95,000 cases.

Singapore

Anyone in Singapore who requires a coronavirus test will be able to get one from an approved provider from Dec 1 as the country seeks to resume more economic and social activities.

We will now make COVID-19 testing more accessible for all. This includes individuals who require pre-departure testing,” and ministry approval will no longer be required for tests before traveling abroad.

Singapore's Ministry of Health

“We will now make COVID-19 testing more accessible for all,” the Ministry of Health said in a statement Tuesday. “This includes individuals who require pre-departure testing,” and ministry approval will no longer be required for tests before traveling abroad.

The ministry also said that from Nov 17, inbound travelers who are not Singapore citizens or permanent residents, except those from lower-risk countries and regions, will need to take a Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test within 72 hours before departure.

The travelers will still be required to serve their Stay-Home Notice (SHN) upon arrival in Singapore and be tested at the end of this period, it added.

The city-state has been building up its capacity to conduct tests for COVID-19, and has said it’s on track to perform 40,000 tests a day by November. It also plans to set up a dedicated testing laboratory at Changi Airport, where it has the capacity to swab as many as 10,000 passengers a day.

On vaccines, US pharmaceutical company Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc said Monday it may ship to Singapore the first batch of a COVID-19 vaccine it has been developing with local scientists early next year.

The statement comes as the company announced positive preliminary results from ongoing early stage clinical trials in the city-state, according a Straits Times report.

Singapore has recorded 58,073 confirmed cases, including 28 deaths. On Tuesday, nine new cases, of which seven were imported, were posted in the country.

People wearing protective masks to help curb the spread of the coronavirus walk on a pedestrian crossing, Nov 9, 2020, in Tokyo. (PHOTO / AP)

Japan

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Tuesday vowed all-out efforts to help the country's northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido tackle a recent resurgence of COVID-19 infections.

Hokkaido Governor Naomichi Suzuki visited Suga at the prime minister's office and briefed the Japanese leader on the latest spike in COVID-19 infections in Hokkaido.

The spike was believed to be related to cooler temperatures as more people stayed indoors, sometimes in poorly ventilated rooms, which helped the virus to spread. Nighttime entertainment establishments have also seen clusters of infections emerge, local officials have said.

Japan's infection tally has increased by 1,279 to reach 110,616 as of Tuesday night, according to the latest figures from the health ministry and local authorities. The figure excludes the 712 cases from the Diamond Princess cruise ship that was quarantined in Yokohama near Tokyo earlier in the year.

The death toll rose by 15 to 1,864, including 13 from the Diamond Princess.

Tokyo, the epicenter of Japan's outbreak, reported 293 new cases to push the capital's tally to 33,060.

Suga pledged again during a parliament session on Tuesday that the government will secure enough COVID-19 vaccines for the whole population by the first half of next year.

Japan’s coronavirus panel cautioned Monday that virus cases could rise without more active contact tracing and better dissemination of information, broadcaster NHK reported. The panel said foreign communities and college students have been an increasing source of outbreaks and noted that cases are on a rising trend in Hokkaido, Saitama, Kanagawa, Aichi, Osaka and Hyogo.

Myanmar

Myanmar reported 1,266 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, bringing the country's tally to 63,241, according to a statement by the Ministry of Health and Sports.

Another 24 deaths were also reported, lifting the toll to 1,461, according to the statement.

Vietnam

Vietnam reported 11 new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, all of which were imported, bringing its tally to 1,226 with 35 deaths, according to the Ministry of Health.

The country has gone through 69 straight days without any new COVID-19 cases in the community, according to the ministry.  

Sri Lanka

The World Health Organization (WHO) has pledged to provide 20 percent of Sri Lanka's population with a COVID-19 vaccine once developed, local media quoted the Sri Lankan Health Ministry as saying on Tuesday.

The pledge was made during discussions held between Health Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi and WHO Representative for Sri Lanka Razia Pendse.

The ministry said in a statement the Sri Lankan authorities had appointed a technical team to identify priority groups to be vaccinated once the vaccination is received.

Iraq

The COVID-19 pandemic in Iraq is under control and the health ministry has followed plans to contain the increase in infections, the ministry's spokesman, Sayf al-Badr, has said.   

The recovery rate from the coronavirus in Iraq is about 86 percent and the death rate is about 2 percent, according to the Health Ministry's reports.

Iraqi officials believe that such rates are widely acceptable with daily recoveries either higher than or equal to the daily COVID-19 infections.

In recent months, the ministry has followed a multipronged anti-COVID-19 plan, such as increasing hospitals' capacity and working to bring in vaccines.

Malaysia

Malaysia's health ministry reported 869 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday, raising the tally to 42,050 infections.

The Southeast Asian country also recorded six mroe deaths, taking the toll from the pandemic to 300.

Thailand

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) said on Tuesday the country has eased several entry restrictions for holidaymakers wishing to visit the country.

"Foreign visitors can now stay in Thailand under the Special Tourist Visa (STV) for up to 60 days, and can extend up to 90 days," TAT Executive Director for Tourism Products Thapanee Kiatphaibool said, adding that the country will only accept applications from low-risk countries or regions.

Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said all incoming passengers into Thailand will still need to go through the 14-day mandatory quarantine

Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister and Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul reaffirmed that all incoming passengers into Thailand will still need to go through the 14-day mandatory quarantine.

There have been stakeholders from the state and private sectors who had been cheering for a reduction in the quarantine days from 14 to 10 days. However, the minister said the proposal will have to be put aside now.

In a separate development, earlier in the day, Thailand said a 53-year-old Hungarian diplomat had been infected after being in contact with his foreign minister, Peter Szijjarto, whose tour to the region was suspended last week after he tested positive for COVID-19.

"They were in the same car that picked up the minister and had a meal together," Sophon Iamsirithaworn, director of the Disease Control Department, said at a news conference. He did not identify the diplomat but said 16 people in Thailand who were exposed to Szijjarto had returned negative tests.

Thailand has successfully kept a lid on its coronavirus outbreaks with 3,844 infections.

Afghanistan

The government of Afghanistan has confirmed 166 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the tally to 42,463, the Public Health Ministry said in a statement Tuesday.

Three more patients have died, raising the toll to 1,577, according to the statement.

Another 233 patients have recovered, lifting the number of recoveries to 34,954, according to the statement.

Bangladesh

Bangladesh reported 1,699 new COVID-19 cases and 16 additional fatalities on Tuesday, taking the tally to 423,620 and the death toll to 6,108, the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) said.

The total number of recoveries rose by 1,648 to 341,416, the DGHS said. 

Brunei

Brunei reported zero fresh COVID-19 infections on Tuesday, the 19th consecutive day with no new cases since Oct 22,

The infection tally remained at 148, including three deaths.  

Domestic travelers wear face masks as they arrive at the Wellington International Airport on Aug 12, 2020. (PHOTO / AFP)

New Zealand

News from Pfizer and BioNTech that they have had promising results from COVID-19 clinical trials of a vaccine is encouraging, which makes it possible that some doses will be available to New Zealand in the first part of 2021, said an official on Tuesday.

Minister for Research, Science and Innovation Megan Woods made the remarks following the news that Pfizer and BioNTech report success in their COVID-19 vaccine study.

In October, the New Zealand government signed an agreement to purchase 1.5 million COVID-19 vaccines, enough for 750,000 people, from Pfizer and BioNTech, subject to the vaccine successfully completing all clinical trials and passing regulatory approvals in New Zealand.

New Zealand reported one new case of COVID-19 in managed isolation and no new community cases on Tuesday.

The case arrived from India via Singapore on Oct 31. They were transferred from managed isolation at the Grand Mercure to the Auckland quarantine facility on Nov. 5 after a family member tested positive for COVID-19, according to the Ministry of Health.

There are 52 active cases of COVID-19 in New Zealand, and the total number of confirmed cases is 1,631, according to a ministry statement.

Australia 

Australia is considering opening its borders to Asian countries, including parts of China, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Tuesday, as Canberra seeks to revive an economy ravaged by COVID-19.

Australia in March shut its borders to all non-citizens and permanent residents, though in October Canberra allowed New Zealand residents to enter. Internal travel is limited, although those restrictions are scheduled to be removed by the end of the year.

Morrison ruled out entry from the United States or Europe, but said Australia may allow people from low-risk countries such as Japan, Singapore and some provinces in China.

“We ... are looking at what alternative arrangements could be hard to channel visitors through appropriate quarantine arrangements for low-risk countries,” Morrison told reporters in Canberra.

The consideration of easing travel curbs comes as Morrison said Australia has gone three days without any locally acquired cases of COVID-19.

All cases have been detected in quarantined locals who have recently returned from overseas.

Passengers wearing face masks arrive from New Zealand at Sydney International Airport on Oct 16, 2020. (PHOTO / AFP)

Nepal 

Nepal will provide free COVID-19 tests and treatment, an aide to the prime minister said on Tuesday, as the total number of infections was set to cross the 200,000 mark.

The move follows a Supreme Court order for free treatment last week after the Communist government asked citizens who could afford to pay to do so, limiting free testing and care to only those who couldn’t.

Surya Thapa, an aide to Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli, said all government hospitals would provide testing and treatment to COVID-19 patients for free.

“Those who want fast services and wish to pay can continue to go to private hospitals,” Thapa told Reuters.

Experts say many COVID-19 patients stayed home in isolation rather than pay up to 150,000 Nepali rupees (US$1,266.57) in deposits before admission to a hospital.

“This also led to fewer people turning up for testing and less contact tracing, causing a rapid increase in infections,” Rabindra Pandey, a public health expert, told Reuters.

Nepal has so far reported 197,024 coronavirus cases and 1,126 deaths, according to government data. There were 2,571 cases and 18 deaths on Monday.

India

India's COVID-19 tally reached 8,591,730 on Tuesday as 38,073 new cases were registered across the country in the past 24 hours, according to the latest data released by the federal health ministry.

The total number of related deaths rose to 127,059 as 448 more COVID-19 patients died, the data showed.

There are 505,265 active COVID-19 cases in the country, while 7,959,406 people have been cured and discharged from hospitals so far.

The Indian government has been ramping up COVID-19 testing facilities across the country.

As of Monday, a total of 119,615,857 COVID-19 tests have been conducted in the country. A total of 1,043,665 tests were conducted on Monday alone, according to data from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) released on Tuesday.

The capital city New Delhi has been witnessing a resurgence of COVID-19 cases over the past couple of weeks, which was termed as the third wave for Delhi.

The total COVID-19 count in the national capital crossed the 400,000 mark last week.

Palestine

Saeb Erekat, a prominent Palestinian spokesman for decades, died on Tuesday after contracting COVID-19, a senior member of his Fatah party said. He was 65.

Chief negotiator in US-brokered peace talks with Israel that collapsed in 2014, Erekat was also secretary-general of the Palestine Liberation Organization and a member of its most powerful faction, Fatah.

Erekat confirmed on Oct 8 that he had been infected with the coronavirus. In 2017, he underwent a lung transplant in the United States, which suppressed his immune system.

He died following multiple organ failure after being hospitalized for three weeks in Jerusalem's Hadassah Medical Center, a spokeswoman for the Israeli hospital said. He had required ventilation and specialised drug treatment, she added.

The official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported that President Abbas mourned Erekat and ordered flags at half-mast for three days.

South Korea

South Korea reported 100 more cases of COVID-19 as of midnight Monday local time compared to 24 hours ago, raising the total number of infections to 27,653.

The daily caseload hovered above 100 for the third consecutive day due to small cluster infections in Seoul and its surrounding Gyeonggi province as well as imported cases.

Of the new cases, 32 were Seoul residents and 18 were people residing in Gyeonggi province.

Twenty-nine were imported from overseas, lifting the combined figure to 3,988.

Five more deaths were confirmed, leaving the death toll at 485. The total fatality rate stood at 1.75 percent.

A total of 131 more patients were discharged from quarantine after making full recovery, pulling up the combined number to 25,160. The total recovery rate was 90.99 percent.

Since Jan 3, the country has tested more than 2.72 million people, among whom 2,668,452 tested negative for the virus and 27,855 are being checked. 

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Israel

Israel is in talks with drugmaker Pfizer to purchase the company's experimental COVID-19 vaccine, Israeli officials said on Monday.

Hezi Levy, director-general of the Israeli Health Ministry, confirmed that Israel is in negotiations with Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech to buy the vaccine candidate.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hailed the vaccine's interim results "very important in the global struggle against the coronavirus."

Israel's Ministry of Health reported 647 new COVID-19 cases on Monday, bringing the total to 319,888.

The death toll rose to 2,678 with four new fatalities, while the number of patients in serious condition increased from 330 to 333 out of 587 patients hospitalized.

The total recoveries in Israel rose to 309,200, with 637 new ones, while the active cases stand at 8,010.

Earlier on Monday, Israel has launched a coronavirus testing laboratory at Ben Gurion International Airport near the coastal city of Tel Aviv.

Turkey

Turkey's daily COVID-19 patients increased by 2,576 on Monday, raising the total number in the country to 396,831, the Turkish Health Ministry announced.

Meanwhile, 85 people died in the past 24 hours, taking the death toll to 10,972.

A total of 2,047 patients recovered in the last 24 hours, raising the total recoveries to 340,286 in Turkey since the outbreak.

The rate of pneumonia in COVID-19 patients is 4.2 percent and the number of seriously ill patients is 2,867.

Cambodia

Cambodia's Ministry of Health (MoH) confirmed on Monday that three more people, who came in direct contact with infected Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto, tested positive for the COVID-19, bringing the total number of infections from Szijjarto to four.

The MoH said in a statement that they were positive for the virus in their second tests, adding, "Currently, the three patients have been hospitalized at the Khmer-Soviet Friendship Hospital for treatment."

On Saturday, a Cambodian bodyguard, who escorted and protected Szijjarto during his Cambodia visit, also tested positive for the COVID-19.

According to the MoH, the samples of about 900 people, who came in direct and indirect contacts with Szijjarto, were taken for the second tests at the Pasteur Institute of Cambodia on Monday and the results will be available in the next day.

Szijjarto, who visited Cambodia on Nov. 3, was declared positive with the COVID-19 on Nov. 4 upon his arrival in Thailand on his Asian tour.

Cambodia has so far recorded a total of 300 confirmed COVID-19 cases, with 288 patients cured and 12 hospitalized, the MoH said.

Kuwait

Kuwait reported 735 new COVID-19 cases and five more deaths, raising the tally of infections to 132,478 and the death toll to 816 in the country.

The Kuwaiti health ministry also announced the recovery of 738 more patients, taking the total recoveries in the country to 123,314.

READ MORE: India's coronavirus cases near 8.5 million

Lebanon

Charaf Abou Charaf, head of Lebanese Order of Physicians, announced on Monday that three Lebanese doctors died from COVID-19, 17 are staying in the Intensive Care Unit and 100 are in quarantine, Voice of Lebanon radio channel reported.

"If the situation remains the same, we will not have any doctors capable of treating COVID-19 patients," Abou Charaf said in an interview.

Abou Charaf urged authorities to impose complete lockdown measures in the whole country in hope to restrict the spread of the virus, adding that 15 to 20 percent of the citizens have not taken proper precautionary measures during partial lockdown.

Qatar

The Qatari health ministry on Monday announced 230 new COVID-19 infections, raising the total number of confirmed cases in the Gulf state to 134,433, the official Qatar News Agency (QNA) reported.

Meanwhile, 214 more recovered from the virus, bringing the overall recoveries to 131,490, while the fatalities remained 232 for the 11th day running as no new deaths were reported, according to a ministry statement quoted by QNA.

Indonesia

Indonesia's state-owned pharmaceutical company Bio Farma said on Tuesday that its clinical trials of China's Sinovac coronavirus vaccine were "going smoothly".

Edwin G. Pringadi, a spokesman for Bio Farma, said there were no plans to cancel the clinical trials, which involve about 1,600 people in the Indonesian province of West Java.

On the same day, Indonesia reported 3,779 fresh infections, pushing the tally to 444,348, data from the country's COVID-19 task force showed.

Another 72 deaths were registered, taking the toll to 14,761, according to the data.

A total of 282 medical workers have died during the pandemic since March to November this year, said the Indonesian Medical Association (IDI). Most cases came from East Java and Jakarta, with 36 and 26 cases, respectively. Both are areas with the highest number of cases in Indonesia.  

The Philippines

The Philippines' Department of Health (DOH) reported 1,347 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, bringing the country's tally to 399,749.

The DOH said that 187 more patients have recovered from the coronavirus epidemic, raising the total number of recoveries to 361,919. The death toll rose to 7,661 with 14 newly-reported deaths.

The department said it has tested over 4.77 million people for the coronavirus infection in the Philippines, which has a population of about 110 million.