The Bavarian Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU) has urged further caution at the European Football Championship because of the Corona crisis. At the Munich venue and in Germany in general, it has “gone well,” said Söder picture. But Söder considers it a mistake that more than 55,000 spectators were allowed into the stadium in Budapest. “I wouldn’t have done it like that in Hungary, I wouldn’t have wanted to answer for it. Football is not worth being the starting point for a superspreader event in that ratio. Enjoy it, yes, but enjoy it sensibly,” said Söder.
Its predecessor and current Minister of the Interior Horst Seehofer (CSU) criticized the spectator regulation with a view to the Delta variant. Especially in Great Britain, tens of thousands of fans in the stadium are “irresponsible,” said Seehofer Süddeutsche Zeitung. He appealed to the European Football Union (UEFA) and the British government to “revise attendance numbers significantly downwards”.
The Prime Minister of Baden-Württemberg, Winfried Kretschmann, has sharply criticized the increase in spectators for the Wembley Stadium in London and the previous images of full stadiums at the European Football Championship. “UEFA and the DFB urgently need to ensure that the rules are respected. The plan to let even more people into the stadiums, like at Wembley, is blatant,” he said Editorial network Germany. The Green politician urgently warned against a further relaxation of the corona rules for the tournament.
Some of the previous pictures already gave the impression that the pandemic was over. “That is an absolutely wrong signal,” said Kretschmann. At the games in Hungary or Denmark, the stadiums were “packed”, the spectators neither kept their distance nor wore masks. This is “irresponsible”. Each of these games could become a superspreader event. “This recklessness makes me stunned.” (29.06.2021)
Thailand tightened measures
A few days before the planned opening of the holiday island of Phuket for vaccinated travelers, the corona numbers in Thailand have risen further. The authorities reported 5,406 new infections within 24 hours on Monday. Only in May have higher numbers been recorded on two days. “The number of cases in Thailand is now increasing faster than in any European country except the UK,” the newspaper wrote Bangkok Post on Monday.
The restrictions in the capital Bangkok and five other provinces have been tightened again. For example, eating in restaurants is again banned, only take-away or delivery meals are allowed. Shopping centers must close at 9 p.m., meetings are limited to a maximum of 20 people. The measures should initially apply for 30 days.
The Southeast Asian country has long been considered a model state in the fight against the pandemic, but has been experiencing its worst wave to date since April. In total, almost 250,000 cases have been confirmed so far. More than 1900 people have died in connection with Covid-19. The pandemic is hard on the country’s important vacation industry. The authorities are currently trying to make at least some popular regions accessible to tourists again. It starts with Phuket, where fully vaccinated people are allowed to go on holiday without quarantine again on Thursday as part of the so-called “sandbox” project. However, strict rules apply. (28.06.2021)
Luxembourg’s head of government tested positive for Corona after the EU summit
Luxembourg’s Prime Minister Xavier Bettel tested positive for the corona virus after the EU summit in Brussels. The Luxembourg government announced this on Sunday evening. The 48-year-old has mild symptoms such as fever and headache, but will continue his work from home. Ten days of quarantine are planned.
At the summit, Bettel had contact with many other European heads of state and government, including Chancellor Angela Merkel. According to his own statements, he has so far been vaccinated against the corona virus. He should have had his second vaccination this week, said a government spokeswoman for the German press agency. For Merkel, Bettel’s positive test is unlikely to have any consequences. The Luxembourg government does not classify any other heads of state or government as a close contact, according to the spokeswoman Bettels. According to the information, this is only the case in Luxembourg if two people are closer than two meters together in a closed room without a mask for more than 15 minutes. A spokesman for EU Council President Charles Michel pointed out on Twitter that the hygiene rules had been complied with at the summit.
1300 new infections in EM city St. Petersburg
In the European Championship game city of St. Petersburg, the number of new corona infections rose before the quarter-final game on next Friday. On Sunday, authorities in the Russian port city reported almost 1,300 new cases in one day, 50 more than the previous day. There were again more than 100 deaths within 24 hours. Nationwide, the authorities spoke of 21,600 new infections. The capital Moscow is worst affected, where there were 6,700 new sick people and 114 deaths, more than ever since the beginning of the pandemic, as the Interfax agency reported.
Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin threatened state television with a lockdown. With a view to the rapid spread of the delta variant, he said: “To solve this problem fundamentally, you have to get vaccinated or go into a lockdown.” Moscow reopened its EM fan zone on Saturday after it had been closed. The numbers in Russia have been increasing rapidly since the beginning of June.
In view of the widespread skepticism about vaccinations, certain professions are required to be vaccinated in several regions of Russia. By contrast, up to 100 people reportedly demonstrated in Moscow on Saturday. According to human rights activists, at least eight people were temporarily held in police custody. (27.06.2021)
Wave of new infections in Great Britain
Because of the spread of the Delta variant, the number of new infections in the UK has risen to its highest level in more than four months. On Saturday, authorities reported 18,270 new cases – about 2,400 more than the previous day and the number since February 5. Compared to the previous Saturday, the number has almost doubled.
With the help of a month-long lockdown and a vaccination program, Great Britain had pushed the number of new infections, corona deaths and hospital patients far down. The highly contagious Delta variant has been causing a contrary trend for several weeks. The cancellation of all Corona measures planned for June 21 has been postponed by four weeks.
Nevertheless, thousands protested against the British government’s corona rules on Saturday in London and demanded that they be lifted immediately. The crowd moved from Hyde Park to Parliament via Oxford Street. There, some participants threw tennis balls with critical and insulting labels over the fences.
A stir in Great Britain is that around 2,500 people who came to the country between February and May and then tested positive for the virus could not be contacted by the authorities. You had given incorrect or incorrect information about your whereabouts when you entered the country. (26.06.2021)
South Africa is increasingly in the grip of the Delta variant
In South Africa, the number of new infections is increasing again significantly. According to the government, the country with more than 56 million inhabitants is increasingly in the grip of the particularly contagious Delta variant. According to official information, there were 18,762 new infections within 24 hours – 11,777 of them in the metropolitan area around the capital Pretoria and Johannesburg. The health infrastructure there is now at the limit of its capacity.
In terms of numbers, South Africa is the hardest hit country in Africa. To date, 1.9 million cases have been documented. Almost 60,000 people died as a result of an infection.
Another variant of the Sars-CoV-2 virus, which is considered to be particularly contagious, is also circulating in the country. Because of this, many countries have imposed restrictions on travelers from South Africa. The previous restrictions have had a devastating effect on the economy. Millions of people are struggling to survive, and poverty and food insecurity have worsened dramatically in just a few weeks. (26.06.2021)