A passenger arrives at Terminal 1 of Manchester Airport in northern England, on June 8, 2020. (OLI SCARFF / AFP)

GENEVA / ADDIS ABABA / BRASILIA / SANTIAGO / BOGOTA / PARIS / RIGA / RABAT / LIMA / MEXICO CITY / LISBON / STOCKHOLM / BUCHAREST / LONDON / WASHINGTON -

Britain said on Saturday it was immediately banning entry to visitors from Denmark in response to concern over outbreaks of coronavirus on Danish mink farms.

Britain initially responded by announcing on Thursday that all travelers arriving from the country would be required to self-isolate on arrival.

Now, after receiving further information from Danish health officials, it has imposed a total ban on arrivals from Denmark, with the exception of hauliers and freight.

Britain's transport department said all non-British nationals or resident travelers who have been in or transited through Denmark in the last 14 days would be denied entry.

It said the ban would be reviewed after a week.

Another 23,287 people in Britain have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 1,146,484, according to official figures released Friday.

The coronavirus-related deaths in Britain rose by 355 to 48,475, the data showed.

In this Oct 21, 2020 photo, White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows listens as US President Donald Trump holds a Make America Great Again rally as he campaigns in Gastonia, North Carolina. (SAUL LOEB / AFP)

US

White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, who has frequently appeared at public events without wearing a mask, has been diagnosed with COVID-19, a source familiar with the situation told Reuters on Friday.

It was not immediately clear when or how he was infected.

Another top campaign aide, Nick Trainer, has also tested positive for the virus, according to the source.

The US had a record 126,714 new cases on Friday, according to data compiled by Bloomberg News from sources including Johns Hopkins University and the World Health Organization. The tally was up from 126,403 a day earlier, and underscores the growing challenge American authorities face in containing outbreaks. The tally may be adjusted as more data are incorporated.

Nationwide, 58,678 beds were occupied by COVID-19 patients, according to Department of Health and Human Services data analyzed by Bloomberg News. Almost 11,000 patients are being treated in intensive care units, according to the COVID Tracking Project. Hospitalizations have soared.

France confirmed a new record of 60,486 COVID-19 cases within 24 hours, beating Thursday's tally of 58,046 cases, official data showed

WHO

Experts from the World Health Organization (WHO) said Friday that there is no evidence at the moment that the mutation of SARS-CoV-2 virus in minks, as found in Denmark, will affect the efficacy of future vaccines for COVID-19.

It's "too early to jump to conclusions as to the implications of what these specific mutations have," either for transmission, the severity of COVID-19 clinical presentation, the immune response, or potentially vaccine efficacy, WHO Chief Scientist Soumya Swaminathan said at a press briefing, adding that "we need to wait and see what the implications are."

Also at the briefing, Maria Van Kerkhove, technical lead for WHO's Health Emergencies Program, highlighted that WHO has seen the circulation of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that caused the COVID-19 pandemic, for months and activities are still ongoing to understand the situation in Denmark.

The WHO has also prompted Denmark to announce a cull of its farmed population of the animals. The Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Italy and the US have all reported finding the virus in farmed minks, the WHO said.

In this May 1, 2019 photo, minks are pictured in their cages at a fur farm in Brumunddal, Norway. (JONATHAN NACKSTRAND / AFP)

Africa

The number of confirmed cases in the African continent reached 1,842,463 with a death toll of 44,843 as of Friday afternoon, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) said.

A total of 1,542,849 people infected with COVID-19 have recovered across the continent so far, according to the continental disease control and prevention agency.

The most COVID-19 affected African countries in terms of the number of positive cases include South Africa, Morocco, Egypt, Ethiopia and Nigeria, figures from the Africa CDC show.

ALSO READ: After mink virus outbreak, WHO looks at biosecurity worldwide

Brazil

Brazil reported 18,862 additional confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in the past 24 hours, and 279 deaths from COVID-19, the health ministry said on Friday.

The South American country has now registered 5,631,181 cases since the pandemic began, while the official death toll has risen to 162,015, according to ministry data, in the world’s most fatal outbreak outside the United States.

Chile

Chile could experience a new outbreak of COVID-19 in a few months, Chilean Minister of Health Enrique Paris said Friday.

As the country slowly reopens, there will be more freedom of movement and activity, but this freedom comes with "greater individual responsibility," the minister said, adding that citizens must "continue learning to live in this new reality, to live in 'COVID mode.'"

Chile has registered 1,808 new cases in the past 24 hours, taking the national total to 518,390.

Meanwhile, 46 more deaths were reported, raising the country's death toll  to 14,450.

Colombia

The number of COVID-19 infections in Colombia has reached 1,127,733, with 9,756 new cases registered in the past 24 hours, Colombian health authorities said Friday.

Meanwhile, 196 more deaths were reported, raising the nationwide death toll to 32,405, the authorities said, adding that 1,020,263 people have so far recovered from the disease.

A medical personnel attends a COVID-19 patient at the reanimation section of the Robert Boulin hospital in Libourne, southwestern France, on Nov 6, 2020 some 45km north of Bordeaux. (PHILIPPE LOPEZ / AFP)

France

France on Friday confirmed a new record of 60,486 COVID-19 cases within 24 hours, beating Thursday's tally of 58,046 cases, official data showed.

The cumulative number of people who caught the coronavirus stood at 1,661,853, the world's fifth highest tally, according to figures posted on the government's coronavirus information website.

Since the outbreak, France reported 39,865 deaths because of the coronavirus after 828 new patients died in one day.

Italy

Italy’s new cases jumped 10 percent Friday to a record 37,809 as daily testing also hit a record 234,245. Daily fatalities were 446, in line with the previous day. Patients in intensive care units rose by 124 to 2,515, compared with an early April peak of more than 4,000.

Tougher restrictions kicked in around the Milan region and key industrial hubs in the north as of Friday. All shops were shut excluding pharmacies, supermarkets and essentials, while no movement is allowed except for work, health or justified reasons.

A medical worker holds a swab as he performs a test for COVID-19 on a man at Villa Mafalfa clinic in Rome on Nov 6, 2020. (ALBERTO PIZZOLI / AFP)

Latvia

The Latvian government on Friday declared a four-week nationwide state of emergency, effective from Nov 9 till Dec 6, to try to stem resurging COVID-19 infections, local media reported.

During the state of emergency, all public events, including outdoor meetings, demonstrations and pickets, will be banned. Only up to ten people from no more than two households will be allowed to gather for private events.

Mexico

Mexico's Health Ministry reported 5,931 new confirmed cases of coronavirus infection on Friday with 551 additional fatalities as a second state planned to enter the highest alert level.

As of Friday, the country has recorded a total of 955,128 cases and 94,323 deaths, with the number of its confirmed cases ranking fourth in Latin America after Brazil, Argentina and Colombia.

The Mexican authorities said the real number of infections is likely significantly higher than the reported confirmed cases.

Morocco

Morocco announced on Friday 5,398 new COVID-19 cases, taking the tally in the North African country since March 2 to 246,349.

Peru

Peru is maintaining control over novel coronavirus (COVID-19) infections, President Martin Vizcarra said Friday.

"Fortunately, now the level of contagion that we have in Peru is under control," the president said during the inauguration of a hospital in the region of Cajamarca.

According to the health ministry, Peru has registered a total of 917,503 cases and 34,783 deaths from COVID-19. 

Portugal

Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa declared on Friday the return of the country to a "state of emergency" for 15 days from Nov 9 to Nov 23 to contain the COVID-19 pandemic.

The state of emergency is the highest stage of civil protection in Portugal. It had been in force between March 19 and May 2 of this year, with two consecutive renewals, for a total of 45 days, allowing the restriction of freedom of movement and the use of private-sector health facilities.

The current emergency decree says that necessary restrictions may be imposed by public authorities to reduce the risk of contagion and implement measures to prevent and combat the epidemic, especially in municipalities with a higher level of risk.

Romania

The Romanian government decided to impose a nationwide curfew and other stricter measures to contain the spread of COVID-19, the head of the Department for Emergency Situations Raed Arafat announced on Friday.

The new nationwide prevention and control measures will take effect on Monday for a period of 30 days, the official told a press conference.

Under the new rules, people's movement will be prohibited between 11 pm and 5 am. "The exceptions include movement in professional interest, for medical assistance that cannot be postponed, for procuring medicines, for child, elderly, disabled, ill persons care or escort, or in case of death."

Romania reported a record 10,260 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, the highest single-day increase to date in the eastern European country, bringing the nation's total to 287,062, the authorities said.

People wearing face masks to protect against the coronavirus disease walk down stairs at a metro station in Moscow on Nov 6, 2020. (KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV / AFP)

Russia

Russia’s Federal Statistics Service said Friday 55,671 people died with COVID-19 from April through September, more than double the direct toll reported earlier.

September’s total was 9,798, up 25 percent from August. The data from Rosstat, as the agency is known, include lethal cases directly attributed to COVID-19 and those where the coronavirus was reported as an “important condition.”

Sweden

Sweden's Public Health Agency on Friday reported 4,697 new COVID-19 infections, the highest daily tally since the start of the pandemic.

The agency also reported 20 new coronavirus-related deaths in the past 24 hours, bringing the cumulative number of fatalities to 6,022. The total number of infections confirmed in the country stands at 146,461.

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