Thursday 5 November
- Covid-19: New four-week lockdown comes into force in England.
- Chancellor expected to extend furlough beyond December.
- Tokyo football final postponed after coronavirus outbreak.
- First foreign pilgrims to arrive in Saudi Arabia after COVID-19 ban perform Umrah.
- United States breaks record for daily COVID-19 cases.
- South Korea approves single test which can detect both Covid-19 and seasonal flu.
Covid-19: New four-week lockdown comes into force in England
BBC News says a new four-week lockdown has begun in England, with people told to stay at home and non-essential shops, pubs and gyms ordered to close.
The new rules ban households from mixing indoors or in private gardens, unless in a support bubble.
Police have warned that people who commit the most “egregious” breaches of the rules will face stiff fines.
Read the full story on BBC News
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Chancellor expected to extend furlough beyond December
The Guardian says Rishi Sunak is expected to announce an extension of furlough beyond December amid growing pressure from business leaders to safeguard jobs and the economy during the coronavirus second wave.
The chancellor is preparing to announce that the flagship wage subsidy scheme – which pays 80% of workers’ wages – will continue to be made available for parts of the country under the highest levels of Covid restrictions, sources said, in a major climbdown for the government.
Read the full story on The Guardian
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Tokyo football final postponed after coronavirus outbreak
France24 says Japan’s Levain Cup football final has been postponed after 13 players and staff at Kashiwa Reysol, including their coach, tested positive for the coronavirus, the J-League said.
Reysol, led by their Brazilian coach Nelsinho Baptista, were due to face FC Tokyo on Saturday at Tokyo’s National Stadium — the main venue for next year’s postponed Olympics — in front of a sold-out, socially distanced crowd of 24,000.
Read the full story on France24
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First foreign pilgrims to arrive in Saudi Arabia after COVID-19 ban perform Umrah
Arab News says the first foreign pilgrims to arrive in Saudi Arabia after a temporary ban to curb the spread of COVID-19 was lifted performed Umrah on Wednesday evening.
The president of the General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques Sheikh Dr Abdulrahman Al-Sudais greeted the pilgrims on their arrival at the Grand Mosque.
The pilgrims arrived in the Kingdom on Sunday and observed a self-isolation period of three days.
Read the full story on Arab News
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United States breaks record for daily COVID-19 cases
Aljazeera says the United States set a one-day record for new coronavirus cases on Wednesday with at least 102,591 new cases and as hospitals in several states reported an increasing number of patients, according to a count from the news agency.
Nine states reported record one-day increases in cases on Wednesday: Colorado, Idaho, Indiana, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Rhode Island, Washington and Wisconsin.
Read the full story on Aljazeera
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South Korea approves single test which can detect both Covid-19 and seasonal flu
CNN says South Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety has approved a new test that can detect both Covid-19 and seasonal flu from one sample, the country’s health authority announced in a briefing yesterday.
Through this method, patients can get results on COVID-19 and seasonal flu from a single test within three to six hours, said South Korean health official Yoon Tae-ho.
Read the full story on CNN
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A quick look at the other headlines
Trump sues as path to victory over Biden narrows
BBC News says Trump and Joe Biden each claim to be ahead in the US presidential election, even as the final outcome hangs on a razor’s edge and both sides ramp up for legal action.
The Trump campaign is challenging vote counts in the key states of Wisconsin, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Michigan.
US election: EU calls for calm, as Trump and Biden battle it out
Euronews says the EU has called for calm and patience, amid a tightly contested US presidential election between Donald Trump and Joe Biden.
Speaking in Brussels, the Commission’s chief spokesperson, Eric Mamer, told journalists the process of counting ballots is “ongoing”.
Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Orders Military Response to Tigray Attack
Africanews says Ethiopia declared a state of emergency on Wednesday following a deadly attack by the Tigray ruling party on a federal troop camp. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has ordered a military response.
The Prime Minister stated in his public address to the country, “My dear people. Today the apostate Ethiopian has stabbed Ethiopia. What makes this attack one of the most shocking attacks is that Tigray People’s Liberation Front TPLF is viewing the Ethiopian National Defence Forces as a foreign army rather than an army that has been protecting the people of Tigray for more than twenty years.”
Children among seven killed in Syria rebel enclave shelling
Aljazeera says rescuers and activists said the Syrian government shelled the last rebel enclave in the country’s northwest on Wednesday, killing at least seven people, including four children.
The attack, on a day of heavy rain, targeted Idlib city and two towns, to the north and south.
Malaysia reports 1,032 new COVID-19 cases, eight new deaths
CNA says Malaysia reported 1,032 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, taking the country’s total number of infections to 35,425.
The health ministry also said there were eight new fatalities, raising the death toll from the pandemic to 271.
Of the new cases, three were imported infections, all of them involving non-citizens.
