Students line up to receive the Covishield, Serum Institute of India's version of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, during a special vaccination drive for students traveling overseas, in Hyderabad, India, June 11, 2021. (MAHESH KUMAR A. / AP)
ANKARA / TEHRAN / COLOMBO / SINGAPORE / DHAKA / YANGON / MALE / JERUSALEM / SYDNEY / SEOUL / ISLAMABAD / ULAN BATOR / MANILA / PHNOM PENH / BANGKOK – India on Saturday reported 84,332 new COVID-19 infections over the past 24 hours, the lowest in more than two months, data from the health ministry showed.
The South Asian country's total COVID-19 case load now stands at 29.4 million, while total fatalities are at 367,081, data. India added 4,002 deaths overnight.
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Australia
Australia's Victoria state, which emerged from a strict lockdown earlier this week, recorded one new community case of COVID-19 on Saturday, the government said via Twitter.
Investigations are underway as to how the person contracted the infection, authorities said.
The outbreak, which triggered the two-week snap lockdown late last month, has now seen 91 cases since May 24.
New South Wales, the country's most populous state, and neighboring Queensland are on high alert after an infected woman and her husband traveled from Victoria through several country towns in both states.
With no new infections on Saturday, New South Wales, which includes the largest city, Sydney, has not reported any locally acquired cases of COVID-19 in more than a month, while Queensland last reported cases in late March.
Bangladesh
Bangladesh's COVID-19 death toll topped 13,000 Frida while the total number of cases surpassed 822,000, as the country struggles to limit the resurgence of infection.
The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) reported 2,454 new cases and 43 more deaths, bringing the tally to 822,849 and the death toll to 13,032.
The total number of recoveries stood at 761,916 after 2,286 new ones were logged, said the DGHS.
READ MORE: Thailand ramps up vaccination amid rise in COVID-19 cases
Cambodia
Cambodia on Saturday confirmed 638 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the national caseload to 37,959, the Ministry of Health (MoH) said in a statement.
The new cases included 594 local infection and 44 imported ones, the MoH said.
Nine more fatalities were also reported, taking the death toll to 320, the ministry said, adding that 605 patients had recovered, raising the total number of recoveries to 31,222.
To date, some 5.22 million vaccine doses have been administered in the kingdom, with 2.39 million people fully vaccinated, MoH's secretary of state and spokeswoman Or Vandine said.
Iran
Iran reported on Friday 9,966 new COVID-19 cases, taking the country's total caseload to 3,013,078.
The pandemic has so far claimed 81,796 lives in Iran, up by 124 in the past 24 hours, the Ministry of Health and Medical Education said at a briefing.
A total of 2,624,802 people have recovered from the disease while 3,494 remained in intensive care units, the ministry said.
By Friday, 4,295,807 people have received one shot of a COVID-19 vaccine, 765,213 of whom have received both shots.
Israel
Israel will lift the ban on travel to Turkey, Ethiopia and Ukraine on June 14, according a joint statement issued by the Ministry of Health and the Prime Minister's Office on Friday.
The decision was taken by the Israeli government following the recent sharp decline in COVID-19 morbidity in the three countries.
Meanwhile, the travel ban on India, South Africa, Mexico, Brazil, Russia and Argentina will remain in force. Israeli citizens and permanent residents who want to travel to the six countries must apply to an exceptions committee.
The Israeli government has also lifted the ban on the entry of non-essential escorts into the passenger terminal, and the obligation of airlines to operate a minimum number of check-in counters in each flight.
Maldives
Maldives has amped up anti-pandeemic measures in prisons in an effort to prevent COVID-19 from spreading in the prison system, state media reported Friday.
Spokesperson for the president's office Mohamed Mabrook Azeez was quoted by state-owned PSM News as saying that prisons are frequently disinfected and inmate temperatures are checked on a daily basis.
Azeez said that inmates who exhibit symptoms of COVID-19 symptoms are being isolated in separate cells. He said 186 cases of COVID-19 have been reported in prisons so far.
Overall, a total of 69,536 cases have been reported in Maldives, including 191 deaths.
Mongolia
Mongolia on Saturday confirmed 1,792 new COVID-19 cases, a record daily high for the third consecutive day, bringing the cumulative tally to 73,896, according to the health ministry.
One of the new cases was imported from abroad while the others were locally transmitted,.
Meanwhile, nine were deaths were registered, taking the toll to 365.
More than 1,637,800 Mongolians have been fully vaccinated so far, according to the ministry.
The Russian Direct Investment Fund, which markets Russia’s Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine abroad, said on Friday that Mongolia had approved the single-dose version of the vaccine, Sputnik Light.
Myanmar
Myanmar's COVID-19 death toll rose to 3,239 after two more deaths were reported in the past 24 hours, according to a release from the Health and Sports Ministry on Friday.
Another 188 new cases were registered after 2,781 samples were tested in the past 24 hours, bringing the tally to 145,064.
The total number of recoveries rose to 132,765.
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Pakistan
Pakistan on Friday confirmed 1,194 new COVID-19 cases, the National Command and Operation Center (NCOC) said on Saturday.
The NCOC said in a statement that the country's number of overall cases had risen to 939,931, including 875,581 recoveries.
The death toll went up by 57 to 21,633, according to the NCOC.
A total of 42,717 active carriers are being treated across the country, including 2,760 who are in critical condition.
Singapore
Singapore's Ministry of Health (MOH) reported nine new COVID-19 cases on Friday, bringing the tally to 62,245.
Three of the new cases were locally transmitted, all of which are currently not linked to one another.
Overall, the number of new cases in the community has decreased from 139 cases in the week before to 36 cases in the past week. The number of unlinked cases in the community has also decreased from 23 cases in the week before to nine cases in the past week.
The toll remained at 34.
South Korea
South Korea has reported 565 more cases of COVID-19 as of midnight Friday compared to 24 hours ago, raising the total number of cases to 147,422.
One more death was confirmed, pushing the death toll to 1,982. The total fatality rate stood at 1.34 percent.
The country has so far vaccinated 11,387,256 people, including 2,873,862 who are fully vaccinated.
People line up to have their swab samples collected for COVID-19 testing in Colombo, Sri Lanka, June 10, 2021. (ERANGA JAYAWARDENA / AP)
Sri Lanka
Sri Lankan authorities on Friday said ongoing nationwide travel restrictions would be extended till June 21 in order to prevent further spread of COVID-19.
Army Commander and Head of the National Operations Center for the Prevention of COVID-19, General Shavendra Silva, told Xinhua that following a meeting held between the COVID-19 task force and President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the president had instructed to extend the restrictions to June 21, 4 am.
The curbs were expected to be lifted on June 14.
However, Silva said that all factories including apparel factories, major construction projects, essential services, economic centers, those involved in agricultural projects, and organic fertilizer manufacturers would be allowed to operate even during the restrictions.
Sri Lanka is presently in the midst of a third wave of the COVID-19 virus with over 218,000 cases reported to date.
Thailand
Thailand on Saturday confirmed 29 new COVID-19 deaths and 3,277 more cases, the highest daily tally in over a week as cases in the prison system climbed.
The daily count rebounded from Friday's 2,290. Of the new cases, 892 were detected in the prison system, according to data released by the Center for the COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA).
In total, Thailand’s cumulative caseload stood at 193,105 with 1,431 deaths.
The capital of Bangkok, the epicenter of the latest outbreak, saw the highest number of cases with 858 new infection reported over the last 24 hours.
Meanwhile, the country is considering to phase out the state-provided free quarantine accommodation for Thai nationals returning from abroad starting next month, a CCSA official said.
From July 1, they may be placed under the 14-day mandatory state quarantine system and pay for their accommodations and food, but the government will continue to cover their medical and healthcare expenses during the quarantine, the official said.
The Philippines
The Philippines' Department of Health (DOH) reported on Saturday 8,027 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total caseload in the Southeast Asian country to 1,308,352.
The death toll climbed to 22,652 after 145 more people died from the disease, the DOH said.
Turkey
Turkey on Friday confirmed 6,261 new COVID-19 cases, including 561 symptomatic patients, raising the tally to 5,319,359, according to the health ministry.
The death toll rose by 69 to 48,593 while the total recoveries climbed by 6,217 to 5,192,945.
More than 19,227,000 people have been vaccinated so far.
Vietnam
Vietnam expects to vaccinate all workers at industrial parks across the Southeast Asian country by the end of August, according to a post on the government’s website. No further details were provided.
Vietnam reported 68 more local virus cases as of 6 am Saturday, including 64 people already in isolation areas, according to the health ministry.