A healthcare worker administers a test at a Covid-19 testing facility outside the Hillcrest Recreational Center in Washington, DC, US, on Nov 24, 2020. (PHOTO / BLOOMBERG)

GENEVA / SAO PAULO  / LONDON / ROME / BERLLIN / CAIRO / PARIS / NEW YORK - France will lengthen the period between the first and second shots of mRNA anti-COVID vaccines to six weeks from four weeks as of April 14 to accelerate the inoculation campaign, Health Minister Olivier Veran told the JDD newspaper on Sunday.

Although France’s top health authority advised a six-week period between the two shots in January in order to stretch supplies, the government at the time said there was insufficient data on how well the vaccines performed with a longer interval.

France could safely do so now because it was vaccinating a younger age group, Veran said.

More than 110 people dining at a clandestine restaurant were fined late on Friday for violating a COVID-19 lockdown, Paris police said, days after the government denied allegations that ministers had attended similar underground soirees.

The swoop in the French capital’s 19th arrondissement was the latest police action against restaurants breaking the rules to offer patrons a slice of pre-pandemic life.

Restaurants, bars and cafes have been closed for sit-down dining for months, and public frustration is growing amid a third national lockdown and another wave of coronavirus infections.

“Guests fined for failing to respect sanitary measures. Organiser and manager arrested,” the city’s police force said on Twitter.

AstraZeneca

When European drug regulators acknowledged a link between AstraZeneca Plc’s COVID-19 vaccine and a rare type of blood clots, it spread another dose of skepticism across the continent. But in the poorer east, the doubts are more over the findings than the shot.

Most western members of the European Union announced some restrictions of the vaccine’s use for younger age groups or halted it completely. The opposite happened across the east, with nine of 11 nations in the region deciding to keep administrating the shot to all adults.

“Let’s not create unnecessary panic,” Bulgarian Health Minister Kostadin Angelov said as he listed the benefits of Astra drug. “Let’s not become a part of that war between the different companies, because it’s already visible.”

A Norwegian study into blood clots and abnormally low levels of platelets in five people who were given the AstraZeneca vaccine for COVID-19 has found that their condition was a vaccine-induced syndrome, according to an article in the New England Journal of Medicine.

“By providing a link between thrombosis and the immune system, these results strengthen the view that vaccination may have triggered the syndrome,” the article cited the study as saying.

Denmark and Norway are avoiding use of the Astra vaccine even though it’s been approved for use there, saying they need more time to review the risks. Sweden and Finland are only offering it to people over the age of 65.

READ MORE: J&J COVID-19 vaccine under EU review over blood clots

EU

Europe could have fully vaccinated 70 percent of adults before the UK reaches its own target of one dose for all over-18s by the end of July, Thierry Breton, the European commissioner leading Brussels’ vaccine task force, said in an interview with the Guardian.

Europe was expecting 360 million doses from five manufacturers in the second quarter, with European factories set to produce 200 million shots a month by September for an overall capacity of 2 to 3 billion by year end. The “extremely rapid” increase in European production capacity should allow the EU’s 27 nations to compensate for first-quarter shortfalls and allow “an almost normal tourist season,” Breton said.

US

Almost a quarter of COVID-19 vaccine doses distributed across the U.S. haven’t been administered, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

While the CDC data don’t specify reasons, health officials have expressed concern about distribution equity and vaccine hesitancy, notably among rural and minority populations. Of some 233 million doses delivered nationwide, 179 million, or about 76 percent, were reported administered as of Friday.

The CDC says some vaccine will always be kept back to maintain inventory, including for second shots. Alabama, Alaska, Georgia, Mississippi and Wyoming have the lowest rates of administering first doses they have in hand.

About 68 million people in the US, or 20.5 percent of the population, are fully vaccinated and 34.5 percent have had at least one dose. Among people 65 and older, 59 percent are fully vaccinated and 77 percent have had at least one dose.

Germany

Chancellor Angela Merkel’s governing coalition agreed on proposed nationwide rules for lockdowns and curfews in a bid to force compliance by some regional governments. Hot-spot designations would be based on per capita infections at the county level, according to the draft law seen by Bloomberg on Saturday.

Merkel’s biggest hurdle is parliament’s upper house, where her governing parties lack a majority. Germany hospitals have come under strain after Covid-19 infection rates began rising in February, though vaccinations have picked up and reached daily records this week.

ALSO READ: WHO: COVID-19 deaths in Europe surpass 1m

A woman is seen receiving a jab of the CoronaVac vaccine at the headquarters of Cacique de Ramos, on of the most traditional carnival groups of the city, at the Ramos neighbourhood in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on April 8, 2021. (MAURO PIMENTEL / AFP)

Italy

Italy reported 344 coronavirus-related deaths on Saturday against 718 the day before, the health ministry said, while the daily tally of new infections fell to 17,567 from 18,938 the day before.

Italy has registered 113,923 deaths linked to COVID-19 since its outbreak emerged in February last year, the second-highest toll in Europe after Britain and the seventh-highest in the world. The country has 3.75 million cases to date.

Patients in hospital with COVID-19 - not including those in intensive care - stood at 27,654 on Saturday, down from 28,146 a day earlier.

There were 186 new admissions to intensive care units, edging down from 192 on Friday. The total number of intensive care patients decreased to 3,588 from a previous 3,603.

Some 320,892 tests for COVID-19 were carried out in the past day, compared with a previous 362,973, the health ministry said.

Russia

Russia has confirmed 8,704 new coronavirus infections over the past 24 hours, taking the nationwide tally to 4,632,688, the official monitoring and response center said Saturday.

The national COVID-19 death toll rose by 402 to 102,649 in the past day, while the number of recoveries grew by 9,579 to 4,258,279.

Romania 

The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Romania surpassed one million on Saturday, reaching 1,002,865 after 4,310 fresh infections, the latest official data showed on Saturday.

The official report also brings the total fatalities associated with the virus to 25,006, including 139 deaths over the last 24 hours.

At the moment, there are around 75,620 active cases in the eastern European country. Of the 13,337 people being treated in hospital, 1,492 are in intensive care units, according to the data released by the Strategic Communication Group, Romania's official COVID-19 communication task force.

A total of 902,239 people have so far recovered from COVID-19.

Canada

Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Saturday said any adult in the country who wants to be vaccinated can be fully inoculated by the end of summer.

The rapid spread of more contagious COVID-19 variants is believed to have driven a devastating third wave in Canada.

As of Saturday afternoon, a total of 30,108 variant of concern cases have been reported across Canada, including 28,624 B.1.1.7 variants, 1,133 P.1 variants and 351 B.1.351 variants, according to CTV.

As of Saturday afternoon, Canada reported 5,986 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the cumulative total to 1,051,246, including 23,282 deaths, according to CTV.

"Although B.1.1.7, which is now confirmed in all provinces and two territories, continues to account for the majority of variants of concern in Canada and has likely replaced the original virus in some areas, there has been a concerning rise in P.1 cases in recent weeks," said Theresa Tam, Canada's chief public health officer, said in a statement on Saturday.

Colombia 

Colombia will allow the private importation of COVID-19 vaccines, the health ministry said on Monday, but the shots must be free for those being inoculated.

The Andean country plans to immunize about 70 percent of its 50 million people this year under a free national program and has administered some 2.4 million doses since February.

Those giving out privately acquired shots must comply with government standards and cannot use facilities needed by the national program, the health ministry said in a draft decree shared with journalists.

Chile

A new batch of CoronaVac vaccine from China's Sinovac arrived in Chile on Saturday to become part of the country's vaccination campaign against the COVID-19.

The shipment was received at Santiago Airport by Chilean Health Minister Enrique Paris and Deputy Health Minister Paula Daza.

The archbishop of Chile’s capital Santiago, Celestino Aos, has been hospitalized after testing positive for the coronavirus, the Roman Catholic Church in Chile wrote in a statement posted on Twitter on Saturday.

Aos, 76, and Monsignor Alberto Lorenzelli, the auxiliary bishop of Santiago, were confirmed by the church as having tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this week.

Chile reported 8,124 new cases of COVID-19 and 105 more deaths on Saturday.

Some 1,068,522 people have been infected with the virus in the country and 24,213 people have died, according to the Ministry of Health.

Peru

One day before it holds presidential and congressional elections, Peru on Saturday marked a second daily record death rate from the coronavirus pandemic that is engulfing the country anew.

The health ministry said 384 deaths had been recorded, taking the total death toll to 54,669, as healthcare workers battle a shortage of medical oxygen and saturated hospitals, and the government struggles to secure sufficient vaccination supplies. On Wednesday, Peru marked its first record number of dead - 314 - the worst since the pandemic hit the country with a first wave in March 2020.

On Sunday millions of Peruvians are expected to go out to vote at polling stations around the country to pick their next president and congressional representatives. Voting is obligatory, on threat of a US$25 fine, polling station numbers have been increased to facilitate social distancing and voters have been urged to bring their own pens and wear masks.

Argentina

The Argentinean Ministry of Health reported on Saturday that the number of cases of the novel coronavirus in the country has risen to 2,517,300, with 57,647 deaths.

Over the last day, 297 new deaths were reported along with 19,419 new cases.

Ecuador 

Ecuador registered 2,199 cases and 109 more deaths from the novel coronavirus in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of infections to 344,877 and bringing the death toll to 12,356, the Ministry of Public Health reported on Saturday.

The number of confirmed deaths in the last 24 hours is the highest that has been reported during the pandemic.

Cuba

Cuba reported five deaths and 1,040 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday, bringing the death toll to 453 and the total number of cases to 85,572, the Ministry of Public Health reported.

"These are bad signs that reflect the high transmission and complications generated by the disease," said the ministry's national director of hygiene and epidemiology Francisco Duran.

Mexico

Mexico’s government on Saturday reported 2,192 new confirmed coronavirus deaths, one of its biggest one-day tolls during the pandemic, after consolidating data from last year to include deaths that were not confirmed at the time.

The figure was far above the daily averages reported by the health ministry in recent weeks.

Mexico’s health ministry said two-thirds of the 2,192 deaths reported on Saturday occurred in 2020 and at the time were not marked down as coronavirus fatalities. They were subsequently reviewed by experts.

“They went through an adjudication process and can now be conferred as deaths by COVID,” Gabriela del Carmen Nucamendi Cervantes, director of epidemiological surveillance of non-communicable diseases at the health ministry, said during a news conference.

Brazil

Brazil's COVID-19 death toll has risen to 351,334 after 2,616 new deaths were reported in the last 24 hours, the Ministry of Health reported on Saturday.

Meanwhile, the country registered 71,832 new cases, bringing the national tally to 13,445,006, the ministry said.

Sao Paulo, the most populous state in Brazil, has also been hardest hit by the virus with 2,635,378 cases and 82,407 deaths.

Starting its vaccination process on Jan. 17, Brazil has so far vaccinated 29.5 million people.

Africa

The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Africa has reached 4,330,666 as of Saturday, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) said.

The Africa CDC, the specialized healthcare agency of the African Union (AU), said the death toll from the pandemic stood at 115,191 while 3,888,495 patients across the continent have recovered from the disease.

South Africa, Morocco, Tunisia, Ethiopia and Egypt are among the African countries with the most cases in the continent, according to the Africa CDC.

South Africa has recorded 1,556,242 COVID-19 cases, the most among African countries, followed by Morocco, at 500,984 cases, and Tunisia at 268,837 cases, it was noted.

Morocco 

Morocco announced on Saturday 740 new COVID-19 cases, taking the tally in the North African country to 501,688.

The total number of recoveries from COVID-19 in Morocco increased to 488,015 after 601 more were added.

The death toll rose to 8,891 with six new fatalities during the last 24 hours, while 449 people are in intensive care units.

The COVID-19 fatality rate in Morocco stands at 1.8 percent while the recovery rate is 97.3 percent.

Meanwhile, 4,471,831 people have received so far the first vaccine shot against COVID-19 in the country, and 4,134,740 people have received the second dose.

South Africa

The coronavirus variant discovered in South Africa can “break through” Pfizer/BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine to some extent, a real-world data study in Israel found, though its prevalence in the country is low and the research has not been peer reviewed.

The study, released on Saturday, compared almost 400 people who had tested positive for COVID-19, 14 days or more after they received one or two doses of the vaccine, against the same number of unvaccinated patients with the disease. It matched age and gender, among other characteristics.

The South African variant, B.1.351, was found to make up about 1 percent of all the COVID-19 cases across all the people studied, according to the study by Tel Aviv University and Israel’s largest healthcare provider, Clalit.

But among patients who had received two doses of the vaccine, the variant’s prevalence rate was eight times higher than those unvaccinated - 5.4 percent versus 0.7 percent.

This suggests the vaccine is less effective against the South African variant, compared with the original coronavirus and a variant first identified in Britain that has come to comprise nearly all COVID-19 cases in Israel, the researchers said.