COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa

Greece is moving towards the peak of the contagion wave with Omicron variants. About 400 patients a day are admitted to hospitals, but the percentage of people with severe symptoms and deaths is low, according to the health ministry in Athens.

Between July 15th and 25th, the peak of the wave of infected with the new variant of Omicron is expected.

Vacationers huddling on ships and aircraft for a visit to some Greek summer paradise will be exposed without any shield to the new subvariants of the virus.

Since the new sub-variants are evading vaccines and new vaccines are still delayed, it seems that the only protective measures against the coronavirus are masks, distances and hygiene rules.

The Ministry of Health will today order the regional health inspectorates (RHI) to issue a prescription for the wearing of protective masks in medical facilities in the cities with the highest incidence of COVID-19. This was announced by the chief state health inspector Angel Kunchev, quoted by BTA.

Australia will offer a fourth Covid-19 vaccine to everyone over 30, health authorities said Thursday, as hospitals bulge with patients in a winter wave of infections.

The government said it is recommending a fourth jab for over 50s -- but also offering it to everyone over 30 despite benefits to the younger age group being unclear.

Ljubljana – Slovenia continues to record an increase in coronavirus cases due to the rapid spread of the BA.4 and BA.5 sub-variants of the virus, but for now the situation in hospitals remains stable and health authorities say the situation is not alarming. New cases his a two-month high of 1,222 on Monday, up by more than 44% from the week before, show Health Ministry data.

Τhe increase of cases but mainly for the increase in the number of patients hospitalized due to coronavirus has caused great concern, especially in view of the summer period, as there will be even greater relaxation of the measures.

Ljubljana – Slovenia logged 466 coronavirus infections on Wednesday in what is a 41% week-on-week rise. Covid cases have been steadily rising in the country for nearly two weeks as the BA.5 Omicron subvariant has been spreading. Hospitalisations remain stable for now, and no new Covid-related deaths were reported.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and other top officials discussed revising stringent anti-epidemic restrictions during a meeting Sunday, state media reported, as they maintained a widely disputed claim that the country's first COVID-19 outbreak is slowing.

China's strict zero-COVID policy has led to a plunge in confidence among European companies operating in the country as supply chains are tangled, revenue projections fall and staff leave, according to a business group survey.

China said Monday that just three people have died from Covid-19 in Shanghai since a gruelling lockdown began last month, despite recording hundreds of thousands of cases of the fast-spreading Omicron variant in the eastern megacity.