Spectators listen to the team's national anthems prior to start of the third cricket Test match at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) between Australia and India on Jan 7, 2021. (Saeed KHAN / AFP)

TOKYO / KABUL / CANBERRA / NEW DELHI / JAKARTA / BAGHDAD / JERUSALEM / VIENTIANE / BEIRUT / ULAN BATOR / RAMALLAH / SINGAPORE / SEOUL / MANILA / ANKARA / WELLINGTON - Australia will begin administering COVID-19 vaccines in February, Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced.

Morrison said on Thursday that Australia's vaccine rollout will occur in five stages with frontline workers in the health, aged care, disability and hotel quarantine systems as well as those living in aged care or with a disability to be the first Australians inoculated against COVID-19 from mid-February.

A female quarantine hotel worker has tested positive for COVID-19 in the Australian State of Queensland, breaking the state's record of no community transmission for more than 100 days.

The woman living in the state capital Brisbane had been unknowingly infectious from Jan 2, the state health authorities said in a statement on Thursday.

The major Australian cities of Sydney and Melbourne recorded no locally acquired cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, marking a positive improvement in the effort to control a recent outbreak.

One case was diagnosed overnight and will officially be included in Friday's figures, which officials said was connected to the initial outbreak zone on Sydney's Northern Beaches which totaled roughly 150 infections.

The acceleration in the COVID-19 vaccination programme comes amid heightened concern about the spread of the virus globally.

Australia’s national cabinet will meet a month earlier than scheduled on Friday, Morrison said, as authorities seek to stop the spread of a more contagious variant of COVID-19 that emerged in Britain. A handful of international arrivals in Australia have tested positive to the UK-strain.

Japan

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga declared a state of emergency Thursday for Tokyo and adjacent areas, trying to stem COVID-19 infections that hit a daily record in the capital.

The declaration covers the capital and the surrounding prefectures of Kanagawa, Saitama and Chiba, Suga said. It will be imposed from Friday until Feb 7.

Suga is set to hold a news conference at 6 pm to discuss the matter. Tokyo announced it had found 2,447 cases of coronavirus Thursday, a record.

Japan’s emergency doesn’t imply the kind of lockdowns seen in some parts of Europe, and the government is seeking far less stringent measures than under its previous emergency last year, which triggered the worst economic contraction on record.

Residents will be asked to avoid going out only after 8 pm and bars and restaurants will be instructed to close at that time. Authorities can’t enforce compliance for now, though Suga is seeking to amend the law to add penalties for businesses that don’t abide by government measures, and formalize incentives for those that do.

Bloomberg Economics’ Yuki Masujima sees the emergency declaration shaving up to 0.7 percent off the economy for each month it lasts. Tokyo and neighboring areas account for about one-third of the country’s gross domestic product.

Ballooning infections have been a blow for Suga, who had sought to restore growth despite the pandemic, including by offering domestic travel incentives to bolster the tourism industry. His public support has slumped, with polls showing most voters favor tougher pandemic measures.

Tokyo reported a record 2,447 new daily COVID-19 infections on Thursday, as the Greater Tokyo area braces for a month-long state of emergency declaration to be imposed later in the day in a bid to curb the surging number of virus cases.

The latest number of infections in Tokyo far eclipses the previous record of 1,591 cases recorded the previous day in the capital of 14 million.

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga promised on Thursday that the Tokyo Olympic Games would be held this summer although Tokyo area has entered a second state of emergency.

Suga, who became Prime Minister last September, told a press conference, "I am determined to hold a safe and secure games," adding that he is optimistic that enthusiasm among the Japanese public will grow once vaccinations begin, the Kyodo news agency reported.

ALSO READ: Japan's new virus cases hit record as state of emergency looms

Afghanistan

Afghanistan's Public Health Ministry reported 120 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, raising the total nationwide infections to 53,327.

The pandemic has so far claimed 2,260 lives in Afghanistan since February, up by seven in the past 24 hours, the ministry said in a statement.

According to the ministry, 210,910 tests for the virus have been carried out in Afghanistan as of Thursday.

A health worker takes a nasal swab sample of an arriving passenger as they are mandated to undergo COVID-19 coronavirus screening at a railway terminus in Mumbai on Jan 6, 2021. (INDRANIL MUKHERJEE / AFP)

India

India's COVID-19 tally rose to 10,395,278 on Thursday as 20,346 new cases were registered during the past 24 hours, said the latest data from the health ministry.

According to the data, the death toll mounted to 150,336 as 222 COVID-19 patients died since Wednesday morning.

There are still 228,083 active cases in the country, while 10,016,859 people have been discharged so far from hospitals after medical treatment.

Delhi, which has been one of the most COVID-19 affected places in the country, has been witnessing a downward trend over the past few days. As many as 654 new cases and 16 deaths were registered in the national capital through Wednesday.

So far, 10,625 people have died in the national capital due to COVID-19, confirmed the Delhi's health department.

Iraq

The Iraqi Ministry of Health reported on Wednesday 839 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total nationwide infections to 599,965.

The ministry also reported nine new deaths, raising the death toll from the infectious virus to 12,865, and 1,889 more recovered cases, bringing the total recoveries to 549,346.

A healthcare worker administers a COVID-19 vaccine to an ultra-Orthodox Jewish man at Israel's Clalit Health Services in Jerusalem, on Jan 6, 2021. (MENAHEM KAHANA / AFP)

Israel

Israel's Ministry of Health reported 23 new COVID-19 death cases on Wednesday, bringing the total fatalities in the country to 3,512.

Meanwhile, the total number of COVID-19 cases in Israel reached 462,209, after 7,065 new cases were added.

The number of patients in serious condition rose from 828 to 887, out of 1,464 hospitalized patients.

Laos

The next target group of frontline medical staff is scheduled to be vaccinated against COVID-19 after more than 100 people vaccinated earlier showed no side effects.

The vaccine, which was first administered in late November 2020, produced good results, local daily Vientiane Times on Wednesday quoted Deputy Minister of Health, Phouthone Muongpak, as saying.

People need two doses of the vaccine to develop immunity to COVID-19. The first group of frontline officials including medical staff had their first vaccination in late November and the second on December 22.

Lebanon

Lebanon registered on Wednesday a record increase in the daily COVID-19 infections by 4,166 to 199,925 while the death toll went up by 21 to 1,550, the Health Ministry reported.

Lebanon will impose a new lockdown which will start on Jan. 7 and last until Feb. 1 amid an unprecedented surge in the number of infections.

Mongolia

Mongolia confirmed 13 more COVID-19 cases on Thursday, bringing the national total to 1,362, according to the country's National Center for Communicable Diseases (NCCD).

"A total of 12,200 tests for COVID-19 were conducted across Mongolia yesterday and 13 of them were positive," Amarjargal Ambaselmaa, head of the surveillance department of the NCCD, said at a daily press conference.

The latest confirmed cases were locally transmitted or reported in the capital city Ulan Bator, said Ambaslemaa.

Malaysia  

Rates of infection are rising in Southeast Asia, with Malaysia recording 3,027 positive cases, setting a record for a second straight day. 

Health Ministry Director-General Noor Hisham Abdullah said in a press statement that six of the new cases are imported and 3,021 are local transmissions.

Another eight deaths have been reported, pushing the total deaths to 521.

Indonesia

Indonesia reported 9,321 confirmed infections on Thursday, bringing the total to almost 798,000. Stricter curbs are due to come into effect on the islands of Java and Bali within days.

New Zealand

New Zealand reported four new cases of COVID-19 in managed isolation since the last media statement on Jan 5. There are no new cases in the community.

Of the new border cases, one is historical and arrived from Britain via Singapore. This person is in the facility in Hamilton, according to the Ministry of Health on Thursday.

The other three cases arrived from Britain and all are in Auckland quarantine facilities, said a ministry statement.

Palestine

A Palestinian government official announced on Wednesday a significant decrease of daily COVID-19 cases in the Palestinian territories after "tightened precautionary measures."  

In addition, "a significant decrease has been recorded in the number of COVID-19 patients who need treatment in hospitals," said Naji Nazzal, director of hospitals in the Palestinian Health Ministry, told reporters in Ramallah.

However, the intensive care units (ICUs) "are still crowded with coronavirus patients," he added.

The ICU occupancy rate reaches 80 percent because some patients still need care for several weeks, Nazzal said, noting the government is working on a plan to deal with the current pressure in the hospitals.

Earlier in the day, Palestinian Minister of Health Mai al-Kaila said Palestine recorded 1,088 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number to 162,322 in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem.

A vendor sells flowers used for offerings during prayers at a stall in Singapore on Jan 6, 2021. (ROSLAN RAHMAN / AFP)

Singapore

Singapore's Ministry of Health (MOH) reported 31 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, bringing the total confirmed cases in the country to 58,780.

Among the new cases, 29 are imported cases and two are community cases.

South Korea

Twenty-one more US soldiers and four civilians in South Korea tested positive for COVID-19, the US Forces Korea (USFK) said Thursday.

The USFK said in a statement that 25 USFK-affiliated individuals were confirmed with COVID-19 after arriving in South Korea between Dec 22 and Jan 6.

South Korea reported 870 more cases of COVID-19 as of midnight Thursday compared to 24 hours ago, raising the total number of infections to 66,686.

The daily caseload stayed below 1,000 for three straight days, but it hovered above 100 for 61 days since Nov. 8 due to small cluster infections in Seoul and its surrounding Gyeonggi province as well as imported cases.

The daily average number of confirmed cases for the past week was 850.

Of the new cases, 292 were Seoul residents and 294 were people residing in Gyeonggi province.

Thirty-seven were imported from overseas, lifting the combined figure to 5,606.

Nineteen more deaths were confirmed, leaving the death toll at 1,046. The total fatality rate stood at 1.57 percent.

READ MORE: PM: Thailand to order another 35m COVID-19 vaccine doses

A man sprays disinfectant on seats inside a waiting room at Mo Chit Bus Terminal in Bangkok on Jan 6, 2021, after the Thai government imposed further restrictions due to the recent COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak. (LILLIAN SUWANRUMPHA / AFP)

Thailand

Thailand will allow private companies and hospitals to import and sell COVID-19 vaccinations as long as the shots have been approved by the nation’s Food and Drug Administration.

The government has set up a pathway for manufacturers to register their vaccines for approval, spokeswoman Rachada Dhnadirek said. Domestic firms won’t be allowed to advertise or take advance orders if the shots haven’t been approved for use locally.

Thailand reported 305 new cases, taking its total to 9,636.

The Philippines

The Department of Health (DOH) of the Philippines on Thursday reported 1,353 new confirmed COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number in the country to 482,083.

The death toll climbed to 9,356 after nine more patients died from the viral disease, the DOH said. Another 360 more patients recovered, raising the total number of recoveries to 449,052.

The Philippines has tested over 6.49 million people since the outbreak so far. The Philippines has a population of about 110 million.

The Philippines is bracing for the new and more contagious coronavirus variant first detected in Britain but had since rapidly spread to many countries.

Turkey

Turkey reported on Wednesday 13,830 new COVID-19 cases, including 1,458 symptomatic patients, as the total number of positive cases in the country reached 2,283,931, Turkish Health Ministry announced.

The death toll from the virus in Turkey rose by 191 to 22,070, while the total recoveries climbed to 2,164,040 after 8,702 more cases recovered in the last 24 hours.

The rate of pneumonia in COVID-19 patients stands at 4.3 percent and the number of seriously ill patients is 3,303 in the country, said the ministry.

Brunei 

Brunei reported one new imported case of COVID-19 on Thursday, bringing the national tally to 173.

According to Brunei's Ministry of Health, the new case is a 38-year-old man who arrived in Brunei on Dec. 25, 2020 via Singapore from Indonesia. He showed no signs of infection and is currently being monitored and treated at the National Isolation Center. Meanwhile, The contact tracing for this case is still being conducted.

With the detection of this latest case, there are 21 active cases being treated at the National Isolation Centre and one case is still in the Intensive Care Unit for intensive monitoring and treatment while the rest are in stable condition.

A total of 32 imported cases have been confirmed since the last local infection case on May 6, 2020. At present, Brunei has recorded 246 days without COVID-19 local infection cases.

Vietnam 

Vietnam reported four new cases of COVID-19 infection on Thursday, raising the total confirmed cases in the country to 1,509 with 35 deaths, according to its Ministry of Health.

All the new cases are Vietnamese citizens who recently entered the country from abroad and were quarantined upon arrival.

The ministry also announced that 1,353 patients have been given the all-clear as of Thursday.

Iran

Iran's health ministry reported 6,360 daily COVID-19 cases on Thursday, raising the total nationwide infections to 1,268,263.

The pandemic has so far claimed 55,993 lives in Iran, up by 103 in the past 24 hours, said Sima Sadat Lari, the spokeswoman for Iranian Ministry of Health and Medical Education, during her daily briefing.

Of the newly infected, 752 were hospitalized, said Lari.

A total of 1,050,553 people have recovered from the disease and been discharged from hospitals, while 4,745 remain in intensive care units, she added.

According to the spokeswoman, 7,993,502 tests for the virus have been carried out in Iran as of Thursday.

Myanmar 

Myanmar reported 594 more COVID-19 cases on Thursday, bringing the tally in the country to 128,772, according to a release from the Ministry of Health and Sports.

A total of 14 more COVID-19 deaths were reported on Thursday, bringing the death toll to 2,799 in total, the release said.

According to the ministry's figures, a total of 112,048 patients have been discharged from the hospitals and over 1.94 million samples have been tested for COVID-19 so far.

Bangladesh 

Bangladesh reported 1,007 new COVID-19 cases and 31 new deaths on Thursday, making the tally at 519,905 and death toll at 7,718, the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) said.

The official data showed that 15,381 samples were tested in the last 24 hours across Bangladesh.

The total number of recovered patients in the country stood at 464,446, including 966 new recoveries on Thursday, said the DGHS.

According to the official data, the COVID-19 fatality rate in Bangladesh is now 1.48 percent and the current recovery rate is 89.33 percent.

Qatar

The Qatari health ministry on Thursday announced 210 new COVID-19 cases, raising the total confirmed number in the Gulf state to 145,271, official Qatar News Agency (QNA) reported.

Meanwhile, 132 more recovered from the virus, bringing the overall recoveries to 142,314, while the death toll remained at 245 for the 10th day, according to a ministry statement quoted by QNA.

A total of 1,272,766 persons in Qatar have taken tests for COVID-19 so far.  

Oman

The Omani health ministry on Thursday announced 182 new COVID-19 cases, raising the total confirmed number in the sultanate to 130,070, official Oman News Agency (ONA) reported.

Meanwhile, 100 people recovered during the past 24 hours, taking the overall recoveries to 122,556, while one fatality was added, pushing up the death toll to 1,505, according to a ministry statement quoted by ONA.