The news came after Johnson & Johnson (J & J) said it would delay its European rollout, a major hit for the continent’s beleaguered immunisation campaign as several countries battle rising caseloads.

The vaccine setbacks has now threatened to dampen hopes that immunisations will allow countries to emerge from the pandemic that has now killed close to three million people and ravaged the global economy.

However, for Europe it can well be a good news as it is set to receive 50 million doses of the BioNTech/Pfizer vaccine initially expected at the end of this year.

The doses will now be delivered in the second quarter of this year, and will start arriving as
soon as this month. EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said: “There are still many factors that can disrupt the planned delivery schedules of vaccines,” referring to the J & J delay.

“It is therefore important to act swiftly, anticipate and adjust whenever it is possible.”

More than 820 million doses of vaccine have now been administered globally, but with
demand far outstripping supply, countries are scrambling to secure much-needed jabs.

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In regions of Middle East and North Africa, the rate of infection has not only increased by 22 percent but the deaths too have gone up by 17 percent in the last one week, claimed Ahmed al-Mandhari, the Cairo-based chief of the WHO for the eastern-Mediterranean.

He said, the situation in the vast region reflects a “worrying trend.” Hence, we are especially worried that the current situation may worsen during Ramadan if people
don’t follow the norms and adhere to the proven social measures that work,” he said.

Ramadan, one of the five pillars of Islam, began in most Muslim countries on Tuesday.  Observant Muslims refrain from eating and drinking from dawn to dusk, and traditionally
gather with family and friends to break their fast in the evening.

“This year, like last year, people may feel that the spirit of Ramadan has changed because of social distancing and lockdowns,” said Mandhari.

The actions that need to be maintained to help contain the pandemic are in line with the
basic tenets of Islam that is take care of your physical health and do no harm to others, he added.

Dalia Samhouri, WHO’s regional head of emergency preparedness, said the international
organisation wanted “countries to do a risk assessment in order to prevent the dissemination of the infection.”

She suggested measures that could be taken around mosques during Ramadan, including
physical distancing, ventilation, and regular disinfection.

People who felt sick must stay home, along with the elderly and those who suffer from chronic disease, she added.

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The WHO said, because traditional markets play a central role in providing food and
livelihoods for large populations, banning the sale of live wild mammals could protect the
health of market workers and customers alike.

The call came in fresh guidance drawn up in conjunction with the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

The three agencies said, wild animals were the source of most emerging infectious diseases in humans and recommended measures to reduce the potential risk.

“Covid-19 has brought new attention to this threat, given the magnitude of its consequences,” WHO spokeswoman Fadela Chaib told reporters.

The agencies recalled that some of the earliest known cases of Covid-19 had links to a
wholesale traditional food market in the Chinese city of Wuhan.

They added that samples from the Wuhan market suggested that it might be the source of the coronavirus pandemic’s outbreak and/or that it played a role in the initial amplification of the outbreak.

They also said that it was likely that SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19 disease,
originated in wild animals, though how the virus made the species jump into humans is not
yet known.

The agencies said there was a strong association between sale of live wild animals in markets and the emergence of new viruses in humans.

“Animals, particularly wild animals, are the source of more than 70 percent of all emerging
infectious diseases in humans, many of which are caused by novel viruses. Wild mammals, in particular, pose a risk for the emergence of new diseases,” the guidance said.

“Traditional markets, where live animals are held, slaughtered and dressed, pose a particular risk for pathogen transmission to workers and customers alike.”

The new document is to provide guidance “to reduce the risk of transmission of Covid-19 and other zoonoses in traditional food markets,” it said.

The agencies called for improved hygiene standards in traditional food markets to reduce the risk of transmitting diseases from animals, and between people.

They called for tougher regulations to control the farming and sale of wild animals heading to markets for human consumption.

They also said that, food and veterinary inspectors should be trained in enforcing new
regulations. They also suggested for stronger surveillance systems for animal viruses, and food safety information campaigns for market traders and consumers.

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This happened before the nationwide shutdown which is intended to stop the spread of coronavirus.

With new cases and deaths hitting record numbers, Bangladesh’s government has ordered all offices and shops to close for eight days from 6.00 am (midnight GMT) on Wednesday.
The country will become virtually cut of with all international flights halted, and domestic
transport curtailed.

Many in the capital of 20 million desperately sought any vehicle to get them back to home
villages and towns, with taxi and bus fares quickly rising. Crowds besieged the main bus stations of the city, despite most inter-city routes having stopped on April 5 after officials imposed fresh restrictions.

“So there is no way we can take them back to their homes,” said bus firm manager Rakib
Rahman, adding: “But the microbus, car and motorbike drivers are making a fortune thanks to this mad rush.”

Police also stopped people boarding trucks that were taking some out of the city, fearing the cramped vehicles would easily allow the virus to spread. Hamidur Rahman, a 25-year-old shopping mall worker, was unable to get a minibus from Gabtoli bus station to his home in western Jeysore district.

“A regular bus ticket to Jessore costs a maximum of 500 taka (six dollars). We have to pay
1,000 for a seat,” he told AFP, after banding together with 12 others to rent an entire bus.
Most of the exodus was made up of informal workers in Dhaka stores, offices and markets.
Didarul Alam, a 22-year-old student and part-time primary school tutor, said he could not
afford to stay in Dhaka.

“The students tell me they don’t need my services. The maid who cooks in our dormitory has left so I am going too,” he said.

The South Asian nation of 168 million people has recorded 684,756 cases and 9,739 deaths, but the number of daily cases has increased sevenfold in a month. Hospitals across Bangladesh say they are being overwhelmed by new cases, and daily deaths have more than doubled.

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“Before the ban on international flights here due to the rise in cases, the seventeen other members of the South Africa Emerging team left Bangladesh late Monday while the remaining five have been put into isolation in Dhaka,” said Shafiul Alam Nadel of the
Bangladesh Cricket Board.

“All members of the South African team were tested for Covid-19 infection before their departure from Sylhet. Of these, five tested positive,” said Himangshu Lal Roy, deputy director of the Osmani Medical College in the northeastern city.

The team’s fifth match was due to start on Tuesday in Sylhet; but they cut short the tour because of the flight ban. The five members who are now in isolation will be tested again post treatment and if the results are negative, they will be sent back home at the earliest possible time,” said Nadel.

Bangladesh has reported more than 684,000 Covid-19 cases and almost 9,800 deaths due to Covid-19 infection. New infections have jumped to 7,000 cases a day in recent weeks, from below 300 in February.

Hence, the government ordered an eight-day closure of all offices and transport from
Wednesday.

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The authorities ordered an eight-day closure of all offices and international and domestic transport, as coronavirus cases hit a new high. “The drastic measures, which will virtually seal of the country, will start Wednesday,” said a government statement.

The South Asian nation of 160 million people has recorded 684,756 cases and 9,739 deaths, but the number of daily cases has increased sevenfold in a month. The rise in cases has left the hospitals in cities across the country overburdened and claimed that the daily deaths have now more than doubled which is a cause of concern.

“All government, semi-government, autonomous and private office and financial institutions will be closed,” said a cabinet statement. International and domestic flights will be halted along with maritime, rail and bus services, the order added.

All stores — except those supplying food — will be shut, but authorities will allow factories to remain open if companies organise their own transport. The cabinet said the closure would end at midnight on April 21.

“There is no alternative now to this in order to curb the Covid-19 surge,” Farhad Hossain, Junior Minister for Public Administration, said ahead of the clampdown announcement.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh opposition leader Khaleda Zia, 74, tested positive for the coronavirus on Sunday despite being under house detention. The two-time former Prime Minister has been serving a 10-year jail term for corruption but has been allowed to stay under surveillance at her Dhaka home since last year.

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“In such protest, one of the protesters was killed and at least three others are in critical condition after police in Bangladesh opened fire on a violent protest against coronavirus restrictions,” officials said.

The incident took place on Monday in the central town of Saltha in Faridpur district, where
rumours had spread that a man at a market was injured while police were enforcing Covid-19 measures to control the increasing cases nationwide.

Thousands of people took to the streets in anger. One group even hurled bricks at a police station, vandalised government offices and torched an officer’s home and two government cars, police said.

A police spokesman said officers opened fire “in self-defence” after the station was attacked. A 20-year-old Islamic student was killed in the fire and at least seven people were injured, including three police, according to Suminur Rahman, Faridpur deputy chief of police.

Staff at state-run Faridpur Medical College Hospital said, three people with gunshot wounds
are in critical condition. “One of them was hit in his buttocks, another in his chest and the third person was shot in both legs,” Abdul Matin, a doctor at the emergency ward, told AFP.

Police said supporters of the hardline Hefazat-e-Islam group had joined the attack.
Hefazat members were involved in deadly clashes during demonstrations against a visit by
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi last month.

Bangladesh on Monday instituted a seven-day nationwide lockdown after 7,087 people
tested positive for coronavirus on Sunday, the highest daily total recorded in the South Asian nation.

All domestic buses, ferries, trains and flights have been suspended, and shops and malls have been shut. A nighttime curfew is also in effect.

Hundreds of shopkeepers in the capital, Dhaka, protested the lockdown, saying it would hurt their businesses.

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The votes were being held even though the country is experiencing a sharp rise in coronavirus infections with many states imposing restrictions on activities.

West Bengal in eastern India was the most important, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu-nationalist BJP party attempting to win power there for the first time in what would be a major symbolic victory.

The state, home to about 90 million people, has seen thousands killed in decades due to  political violence. Now the current campaign has triggered dangerous clashes between supporters of the BJP and the ruling TMC party. The TMC, headed by fierce Modi critic Mamata Banerjee, has accused the BJP of attempting to import divisive sectarian politics into the state, which has a large Muslim minority.

On Tuesday, two people were killed including the mother of a BJP supporter and a man in his 30s who was a member of the TMC, police said. Shots were fired outside several polling stations during clashes in areas outside the state capital Kolkata, leaving at least 20 people injured, police said.

Voters were being intimidated into staying away from polling stations “in hundreds of villages,” Dilip Ghosh, a senior local BJP member, told AFP. Because of the need for extra security, West Bengal has spread its election over eight phases culminating on April 29. The north-eastern state of Assam, home to over 30 million, was also holding the last out of three phases on Tuesday, with the BJP vying to hold on to power.

The state is polarised along ethnic and religious lines, with immigration from neighbouring Bangladesh one of the biggest campaign issues.

A “citizenship list” in Assam state in 2019 left of almost two million people unable to prove they were Indian, many of them Muslims, a process many fear the BJP wants to roll out nationwide. The southern regions of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry also went to the polls, with local parties dominating the race but the BJP hoping to make inroads.

In Tamil Nadu an alliance led by MK Stalin — named by his father after the late Soviet ruler — was aiming to win power with his DMK party. In Kerala the Left Democratic Front, a coalition including two communist parties, was fighting to retain power against an alliance led by Congress, the BJP’s main national rivals.

Puducherry, a small former French colony previously known as Pondicherry, has been rocked recently by political defections and resignations leading to the collapse of its Congress-led government. Results from all the elections, which come two years after Modi was elected to a second straight term, are due on May 2.

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