Australia
Record COVID case numbers reported in 2 Australia states
Australia’s Victoria and Queensland states reported record levels of new daily coronavirus infections on Tuesday as pressure on testing centers prompted calls for wider use of rapid antigen tests.
Queensland state reported 1,158 cases, the first time the state has seen more than 1,000 cases in a day, but hospitalizations remained low. The state has more than 4,000 active cases of which 257 are reported to be the omicron variant.
State Health Minister Yvette D’Ath announced Tuesday that travelers from out of state no longer will have to have a PCR test five days after arrival. D’Ath said of the tens of thousands who had crossed the state’s borders recently, only 0.6 percent had tested positive on day five.
“Anyone who is waiting in lines now for the day five test . . . will not be required to get day five tests from now,” she said. “We thank everyone for doing the right thing. We have made sure we’ve done this in a safe and responsible way but from now, that no longer applies.”
Read: Australia’s most populous state reports 1st omicron death
Victoria state reported 2,738 new cases Tuesday, beating the previous state record of 2,297 cases in mid-October.
Australia’s most-populous state, New South Wales, saw a slight fall in case numbers but that corresponded with fewer tests around Christmas Day. The state reported 6,062 new infections Tuesday, down from 6,324 a day earlier.
New South Wales Heath Minister Brad Hazzard said the requirement for travelers to Queensland to have a negative PCR test 72 hours before departure was putting unnecessary strain on testing facilities. He said in enforcing the requirement, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk was “perverting the purposes of pathology testing.”
“If Queensland thinks people are arriving free of COVID, that’s not necessarily true,” Hazzard said. “These tests have been done three or four days before arriving. It’s counterproductive.
“This rule is contributing to the breakdown of the biggest pathology system in the country. We are not getting the turnaround times we need.”
Read: Australia PM meets with state leaders as virus cases surge
Long lines were reported at testing centers around Sydney on Tuesday.
Australian federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has called for rapid antigen tests to replace PCR tests for most interstate travelers, to relieve pressure on testing centers.
“Using that rapid antigen test ahead of interstate travel is a better approach than the more expensive and time consuming PCR test,” Frydenberg told the ABC. “I think that’s a sensible balance recognizing that people want some level of surety about their health status before they travel.
“But at the same time they want to avoid the long queues and long waiting times coming with the PCR tests.”
Australia’s most populous state reports 1st omicron death
Australia’s New South Wales state reported more than 6,000 new COVID-19 cases on Monday and confirmed its first death from the omicron variant.
The fatal case was identified as a man in his 80s who was infected at an aged care facility in western Sydney. He was fully vaccinated but had underlying health conditions.
New South Wales, the country’s most populous state, reported 6,324 new infections Monday, a fall of 70 from the record number a day before. There were 524 people in hospitals, including 55 in intensive care.
Read: Global covid cases near 280mn as Omicron wave pounds hospitals
New measures came into force in New South Wales on Monday, including limits of one person per 2 square meters (22 square feet) in bars and restaurants and required “check-ins” with QR codes in hospitality venues.
Health Minister Brad Hazzard said the state government is considering lifting the requirement for health workers to isolate after being exposed to COVID-19 because of staff shortages.
Victoria state reported 1,999 new cases on Monday with three deaths.
State COVID-19 response commander Jeroen Weimar said Victoria has moved to random genome testing for the omicron variant to better understand its spread.
Australia's New South Wales sets new daily COVID case record
Australia’s most populous state reported a record number of new COVID-19 cases on Sunday and a sharp jump in hospitalizations while thousands of people were isolating at home after contracting the virus or coming into contact with someone who has.
New South Wales reported 6,394 new infections, up from 6,288 a day earlier. Case numbers in the state have surged over the past two weeks but hospitalizations have lagged behind new infections.
More than 70 percent of cases in some Australian states are the omicron variant of the coronavirus but New South Wales does not routinely carry out genome testing to identify the variant. State Health Minister Brad Hazzard indicated Sunday that omicron is widespread.
READ: Australia's Queensland state to open to vaccinated travelers
“We would expect that pretty well everybody in New South Wales at some point will get omicron,” Hazzard said. “If we’re all going to get omicron, the best way to face it is when we have full vaccinations including our booster.”
Health officials reported 458 active cases in hospitals across the state, up sharply from 388 the day before. There were 52 people in intensive care in New South Wales.
Victoria, the country's second most populous state, reported 1,608 new COVID-19 cases and two deaths on Sunday, with 374 people in hospitals, including 77 in intensive care.
More than 30,000 people in Victoria spent Christmas isolating at home, unable to celebrate with family or friends. Of those, about half were reported to be active cases who contracted the virus in the days leading up to Christmas.
Doctors and pharmacists in New South Wales have said they are running short of vaccine doses amid a rush for shots spurred by concern over the omicron variant.
Australia PM meets with state leaders as virus cases surge
New COVID-19 cases in Australia’s most populous state surged to a pandemic record Wednesday, as Prime Minister Scott Morrison met with state leaders to discuss preventative measures.
Morrison emerged from the national cabinet meeting again rejecting lockdowns and mask mandates imposed by the federal government. He said policies on mask wearing were best left to state governments and to Australians who should follow “commonsense behavioral measures.”
New South Wales state on Wednesday recorded 3,763 new cases, up 706 from Tuesday, though the number of omicron cases was not known because genomic sequencing is not routinely carried out there.
State and territory leaders were expected to press Morrison to reduce the gap between second vaccine doses and booster shots. Morrison said any decision on reducing the gap from five to four months would be made by the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunization.
Australia has been battling the omicron variant of COVID-19 for about four weeks and cases have been steadily rising in populous New South Wales and Victoria states.
Read: US population growth at lowest rate in pandemic’s 1st year
Victoria reported 1,503 cases on Wednesday, of which about 60 were reportedly omicron.
Morrison said Australia is taking the highly transmissible omicron strain “very seriously,” adding that “what we’re dealing with is a much greater volume of cases.”
“The cases themselves don’t necessarily present the challenge, as we’ve always said. What really matters is how many people are experiencing serious illness and how many people are having to draw on the considerable resources of ICUs and our hospital system,” he added.
Morrison said state and territory leaders told him that despite the increase in cases they have not yet seen any significant impact on the hospital system.
The federal government from Wednesday will pay doctors and pharmacists an additional $10 to administer booster shots, Morrison said.
Read: 5 children die in bouncy castle accident in Australia
He said that mask wearing indoors is “highly recommended whether it is mandated or not” and that compliance with “commonsense rules” would ensure Australians celebrate Christmas with fewer disruptions.
“My message is to stay calm, get your booster, follow the commonsense behavioral measures as you’re going into Christmas and we look forward to that,” Morrison said.
5 children die in bouncy castle accident in Australia
Five children died and four others were in critical condition on Thursday after falling from a bouncy castle that was lifted 10 meters (33 feet) into the air by a gust of wind at a school on Australia's island state of Tasmania.
The school was holding a celebration to mark the end of the school year.
The children who died included two boys and two girls in year 6, which would make them 10 or 11 years old, said Tasmania police Commissioner Darren Hine. Police later Thursday confirmed a fifth child died in the hospital.
Five other children were being treated, including four in critical condition. Hine said an investigation is underway.
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Images published by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation showed police officers consoling each other as paramedics provided first aid to victims.
Parents arrived at the school gate to collect their children as helicopters ferried the injured to hospitals.
Tasmania state Premier Peter Gutwein called the incident “simply inconceivable... I know this is a strong and caring community that will stand together and support one another."
Tasmania police commander Debbie Williams told reporters “several children fell from the jumping castle. It appears they may have fallen from a height of approximately 10 meters."
“This is a very tragic event and our thoughts are with the families and the wider school community and also our first responders,” Williams said.
Also read: African children should get world's 1st malaria vaccine: UN
Lives, achievements of Bangabandhu, Ex- PM Gough remembered in Australia
Life and legacy of two contemporary political giants - Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Shiekh Mujibur Rahman and former Australian Prime Minister Gough Whitlam -have been remembered in Sydney, Australia.
Bangladesh High Commission, Canberra and the Consulate General of Bangladesh in Sydney in association with the Whitlam Institute, Western Sydney University organized a seminar at Parramatta South Campus Chancellery, Western Sydney University (WSU) on Wednesday.
The event was a special tribute to mark the birth centenary of Bangabandhu and the Golden Jubilee of Independence of Bangladesh in Australia, said the High Commission on Thursday.
"Maitri Diwas" celebrated in Australia
Bangladesh High Commission and Indian High Commission in Canberra, Australia on Monday jointly celebrated "Maitri Diwas" (Friendship Day) and Golden Jubilee of Independence of Bangladesh.
On this historic day in 1971 India recognized Bangladesh as a sovereign and independent state which was designated as Bangladesh-India Friendship Day.
At the outset the guests observed one minute silence in honour of all Martyred who sacrificed their lives in liberation war in 1971.
Also read: December 6: "Maitri Diwas" to reflect deep, abiding friendship between Dhaka, Delhi
A video clip on Bangladesh’s heritage as well as social, economic and cultural linkages between Bangladesh and India was also screened.
Dutch, Australians find omicron variant: others halt flights
The Netherlands confirmed 13 cases of the new omicron variant of the coronavirus on Sunday and Australia found two as the countries half a world apart became the latest to detect it in travelers arriving from southern Africa.
Israel decided to bar entry to foreigners and Morocco said it would suspend all incoming air travel from around the world for two weeks starting Monday — the most drastic of a growing raft of travel curbs being imposed by nations around the world as they scramble to slow the variant's spread.
Confirmed or suspected cases of the new variant have already emerged in several European countries, in Israel and in Hong Kong, just days after it was identified by researchers in South Africa. The "act first, ask questions later" approach reflected growing alarm about the emergence of a potentially more contagious variant nearly two years into a pandemic that has killed more than 5 million people, upended lives and disrupted economies across the globe.
While much remains to be learned about the new variant, researchers are concerned that it may be more resistant to the protection provided by vaccines and could mean that the pandemic lasts for longer than anticipated.
The Dutch public health authority confirmed that 13 people who arrived from South Africa on Friday have so far tested positive for omicron. They were among 61 people who tested positive for the virus after arriving on the last two flights to Amsterdam's Schiphol airport before a flight ban was implemented. They were immediately put into isolation, most at a nearby hotel, while sequencing was carried out.
Authorities in Australia said two overseas travelers who arrived in Sydney from Africa became the first in the country to test positive for the omicron variant. Arrivals from nine African countries are now required to quarantine in a hotel upon arrival. Two German states reported a total of three cases in returning travelers over the weekend.
Read: South African scientists brace for wave propelled by omicron
Israel moved to ban entry by foreigners and mandate quarantine for all Israelis arriving from abroad.
"Restrictions on the country's borders is not an easy step, but it's a temporary and necessary step," Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said at the start of the weekly Cabinet meeting.
Dr. Ran Balicer, head of the government's advisory panel on COVID-19, told Israel's Kan public radio that the new measures were necessary for the "fog of war" surrounding the new variant, saying it was "better to act early and strictly" to prevent its spread.
Morocco's Foreign Ministry tweeted Sunday that all incoming air travel to the North African country would be suspended to "preserve the achievements realized by Morocco in the fight against the pandemic, and to protect the health of citizens." Morocco has been at the forefront of vaccinations in Africa, and kept its borders closed for months in 2020 because of the pandemic.
Dutch Health Minister Hugo de Jonge said he asked his country's public health institute for advice on whether additional travel restrictions are needed, but he wants to coordinate with his European Union counterparts because "I think those are really steps that we will have to take together."
Many countries have restricted or banned travel from various southern African countries — among the latest New Zealand, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. Places that already had imposed restrictions include Brazil, Canada, the EU, Iran, and the U.S. This goes against the advice of the World Health Organization, which has warned against any overreaction before the variant is thoroughly studied.
South Africa's government responded angrily to the travel bans, which it said are "akin to punishing South Africa for its advanced genomic sequencing and the ability to detect new variants quicker." It said it will try to persuade countries that imposed them to reconsider.
"Whilst we respect the right of all countries to take the necessary precautionary measures to protect their citizens, we need to remember that this pandemic requires collaboration and sharing of expertise," the minister for international relations and cooperation, Naledi Pandor, said in a statement.
Read: Britain tightens COVID rules as world on alert over omicron
The United States' top infectious diseases expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, said he wouldn't be surprised if the omicron variant was already in the U.S., though it hasn't yet been detected there.
In Europe, much of which already has been struggling with a sharp increase in cases over recent weeks, officials also were on guard.
The U.K. on Saturday tightened rules on mask-wearing and on testing of international arrivals after finding two omicron cases. Spain announced it won't admit unvaccinated British visitors starting Dec. 1.
Italy was going through lists of airline passengers who arrived in the past two weeks after a business traveler who returned from Mozambique and landed in Rome on Nov. 11 tested positive for omicron. The Lazio region's top health official, Alessio D'Amato, said that "controls at airports, ports and train stations have been reinforced."
French Health Minister Olivier Veran said that, while his country had no confirmed cases yet, "it is probable that there currently are cases in circulation."
While it is not clear yet how existing vaccines work against the omicron variant, Veran said France isn't changing its strategy to fight the latest surge of infections driven by the delta variant, which centers on increasing vaccinations and boosters.
David Hui, a respiratory medicine expert and government adviser on the pandemic in Hong Kong, said that even though it is not clear if current coronavirus vaccines are effective against the new variant, the city's vaccination rate should be increased and booster doses should be implemented as soon as possible.
He said the two people who tested positive for the omicron variant had received the Pfizer shot and exhibited very mild symptoms, such as a sore throat.
"Vaccines should work but there would be some reduction in effectiveness," he said.
Tim Paine takes indefinite mental health break from cricket
Former Australia test cricket captain Tim Paine is set to miss the first Ashes test and is taking an indefinite mental health break from the game.
The news comes a week after Paine tearfully quit as captain after revelations of a scandal involving the sending of inappropriate texts to a female co-worker in 2017.
Cricket Australia, which named fast bowler Pat Cummins as Paine's replacement on Friday, said Paine advised them he would be “stepping away from cricket for a period of time."
"We recognize that this is an incredibly difficult time for Tim and his family and are committed to supporting them," Cricket Australia chief executive Nick Hockley said in a statement. “We respect and understand Tim’s decision to have a break at this time to focus on his and his family’s well-being.”
Paine’s teammates were hoping for the wicketkeeper to play on Dec. 8 — his 37th birthday — when Australia’s five-test series against England begins in Brisbane. As of Thursday, the veteran was scheduled to join the test squad this weekend.
Paine was called up and set to bat in Tasmania’s one-day match against Western Australia on Friday, giving him a chance to play five consecutive days of cricket after a low-key return via the state’s second XI.
But Cricket Tasmania (CT) said Friday that Paine would not take his spot in the side.
“Following discussions over the last 24 hours, Tim Paine has advised Cricket Tasmania that he will be taking a leave of absence from all forms of cricket for the foreseeable future,” CT said in a statement. “Cricket Tasmania will continue to support Tim and his family both professionally and personally over the summer.”
Likely wicketkeeper replacements for Paine in the test side are Alex Carey or Josh Inglis.
Australia to welcome vaccinated foreign students, workers
The Australian government expects 200,000 vaccinated foreign students and skilled workers will soon return without quarantining when the country further relaxes pandemic restrictions next week.
From Dec. 1, students, skilled workers and travelers on working vacations will be allowed to land at Sydney and Melbourne airports without needing to seek exemptions from a travel ban, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Monday.
“The return of skilled workers and students to Australia is a major milestone in our pathway back, it’s a major milestone about what Australians have been able to achieve and enable us to do,” Morrison said.
The government expects 200,000 arrivals in the two categories by January, he said.
Vaccinated citizens of Japan and South Korea will also be allowed in without quarantining, as well as people on humanitarian visas.
But the government has yet to decide when general tourists will be allowed to return.
Read: Global Covid cases near 258 million amid vaccination
“I think Australians are very keen to see us take this step-by-step approach,” Morrison said.
“They’ve been through a lot and they’ve sacrificed a lot to ensure that we can open safely so we can stay safely open,” he added.
While vaccinated travelers will be able to arrive without quarantining in New South Wales and Victoria, Australia’s most populous states, parts of the country with lower vaccination rates still impose pandemic restrictions at state lines.
After a troubled and faltering start, Australia’s vaccine rollout has gathered pace. More than 85% of the population aged 16 and older is now fully vaccinated.
Australia first reopened its border to quarantine-free travelers on Nov. 1 after 20 months of some of the most draconian pandemic restrictions adopted by any democratic country. Arrivals were first restricted to Australian citizens and permanent residents.
The first flights in an Australia-Singapore quarantine-free travel bubble began on Sunday.
Some Australian farmers have left fruit and vegetables to rot in fields because the backpackers who provide the seasonal workforce of pickers have been absent.
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The backpackers were some of Australia’s highest yielding visitors, spending 3.2 billion Australian dollars ($2.3 billion) a year before the pandemic. They also made up a substantial part of the seasonal workforce, Business Group Australia executive director John Hart said in a statement.
Universities Australia chief executive Catrina Jackson said her sector lost AU$1.8 billion ($1.3 billion) last year because foreign students were locked out.
“We’ve got 130,000 students waiting to get back into this country. They’ve been so patient and they’ve been so resolute. They’ve been studying online for ... almost two years now,” Jackson told Australian Broadcasting Corp.
“Some of them have just got a year left of their degree. It really is time to get them back into the country so they can finish their degree and get on with their lives,” Jackson said.