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Jumat, 17 Juli 2020

Coronavirus: Travellers entering S'pore after visiting Japan, HK, Australia's Victoria state must serve SHN at dedicated facilities - The Straits Times

SINGAPORE - From next Monday (July 20), travellers entering Singapore after visits to - including transits in - Japan, Hong Kong and the Australian state of Victoria within the last 14 days will be required to serve their stay-home notice (SHN) at dedicated facilities instead of at their own place of residence.

They will also have to undergo a Covid-19 test before they end their SHN.

The new measures come as these places have seen a recent resurgence of Covid-19 cases.

Specifically, travellers who left Singapore from March 27, despite the prevailing travel advisory against leaving the country, are required to pay for their stay at dedicated SHN facilities. Travellers who are not Singapore citizens or permanent residents are also required to pay for their stay at dedicated SHN facilities.

The Straits Times understands that the cost of each 14-day stay is about $1,500. The Covid-19 test for each person costs an additional $200.

At a virtual press conference on Friday evening, National Development Minister Lawrence Wong said that the multi-ministry task force tackling Covid-19, which he co-chairs, constantly reviews and updates border measures based on their assessment of the viral situation around the world.

He said: "In some countries, you are seeing a resurgence... it has not been controlled at all and the cases are still accelerating. So we really need to remain vigilant - both at our borders, in terms of the measures we have in place... as well as within our community, to continue to ensure that we control the infection and control the spread of the virus within our community."

A Ministry of Health press release said: "As the global situation evolves, we will continue to update our border measures. Travellers planning to enter Singapore should be prepared to be subjected to the prevailing border measures upon entry, including payment for their stay at dedicated SHN facilities where applicable."

Shark pulls 10-year-old from fishing boat in Australia - CNA

SYDNEY: A shark "grabbed" a 10-year-old boy from a fishing boat off Australia on Friday (Jul 17) but swam off after his father jumped in to save him, officials said.

The boy was taken to hospital in stable condition with cuts to his arm, chest and head after the attack off the coast of the island state of Tasmania, the local government reported.

The child was wearing a life vest as he accompanied his father and two other men fishing 5km from shore when the shark "grabbed him from the boat", it said in a statement.

READ: Diver dies in Australia shark attack

Australia has one of the world's highest incidences of shark attacks and there have been five fatal maulings in the country so far this year.

The most recent was a 15-year-old surfer killed last week off the country's eastern coast.

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2020-07-17 07:57:01Z
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Shark pulls 10-year-old from fishing boat in Australia - CNA

SYDNEY: A shark "grabbed" a 10-year-old boy from a fishing boat off Australia on Friday (Jul 17) but swam off after his father jumped in to save him, officials said.

The boy was taken to hospital in stable condition with cuts to his arm, chest and head after the attack off the coast of the island state of Tasmania, the local government reported.

The child was wearing a life vest as he accompanied his father and two other men fishing 5km from shore when the shark "grabbed him from the boat", it said in a statement.

READ: Diver dies in Australia shark attack

Australia has one of the world's highest incidences of shark attacks and there have been five fatal maulings in the country so far this year.

The most recent was a 15-year-old surfer killed last week off the country's eastern coast.

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Taiwan's Hong Kong envoy 'forced' to leave over 'political obstacles' - CNA

TAIPEI: Taiwan on Friday (Jul 17) said its top representative to Hong Kong has returned home due to "unnecessary political obstacles", with local media reporting he refused to sign a pro-Beijing statement.

China has been angered by Taiwan's support for the city's protests and the government's decision to open an office to help Hong Kongers who want to relocate to the island.

Beijing's new national security law, imposed on Hong Kong late last month, has further strained ties, ordering Taiwanese political organisations to declare staff and assets.

Kao Ming-tsun, acting director of Taipei Economic and Cultural Office, "was forced to return to Taiwan because the Hong Kong side violated the consensus and set up unnecessary political obstacles", said Chiu Chui-cheng, spokesman of the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC), Taiwan's top China policy body.

Chiu declined to elaborate on what the obstacles were.

READ: Commentary: China really wants Hong Kong to succeed

Taiwan's Up Media news said Kao refused to sign a statement supporting Beijing's view that Taiwan is part of "one China" when he was renewing his work visa.

A source in Taipei with knowledge of Kao's decision told AFP he did refuse to sign the statement presented by the Hong Kong authorities.

Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen rejects the idea of "one China" and views the democratic, self-ruled island as de facto independent nation.

That stance infuriates Beijing, which regards Taiwan as its territory and has vowed to one day seize it, by force if necessary.

It has ramped up economic, diplomatic and military pressure since Tsai's 2016 election.

READ: 'We're next': Hong Kong security law sends chills through Taiwan

Relations between Taiwan and semi-autonomous Hong Kong have also rapidly deteriorated.

The office handling unofficial ties has already been devoid of a chief since mid-2018 with Hong Kong yet to issue a visa. Taipei officials routinely avoid travelling there.

Under the new national security law, Beijing says it can prosecute national security crimes committed overseas, including by foreigners.

That has sparked concerns Taiwanese nationals and other foreigners who are critical of Beijing could be arrested travelling to or transiting through Hong Kong.

On Thursday, Taiwan warned China could use the new security law for "hostage diplomacy" and urged democratic countries to unite against Beijing's "autocratic" expansion.

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2020-07-17 06:05:58Z
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Kamis, 16 Juli 2020

'In the fight of our lives': Australia's Victoria state reports second day of record COVID-19 cases - CNA

SYDNEY: Australia's second-most populous state of Victoria on Friday (Jul 17) reported a record increase in daily coronavirus cases for a second consecutive day.

Victoria reported 428 new daily infections, a day after logging its previous high of 317 new cases, said Premier Daniel Andrews. It also reported three new deaths.

The three who died were a man and a woman in their 80s as well as another man in his 70s, The Sydney Morning Herald cited Andrews as saying.

"I can offer no further information about those three tragedies, but we send our best wishes and our thoughts," he said.

The state has been isolated from the rest of the country for more than a week following a fresh outbreak of the disease. The 4.9 million residents in state capital Melbourne have been ordered to stay home except for essential business.

On Wednesday, Andrews singled out a minority of people for defying lockdown orders, which require people to stay home except for a small number of permissible activities, and warned that restrictions could be extended.

"If, however, people do not do the right thing then we will have to move to additional restrictions being put in place and potentially prolong ... these restrictions," Andrews told reporters in Melbourne.

READ: Australian pub cluster adds to second-wave COVID-19 fears

NO DANCING, NO MINGLING

The surge in COVID-19 cases in Victoria has stirred concerns of a national second wave, prompting internal border closures and renewed social distancing restrictions in neighbouring states.

"We are in the fight of our lives," Victoria's Minister for Health Jenny Mikakos told reporters in Melbourne.

Australia has recorded just over 11,000 cases of COVID-19, with 116 fatalities.

New South Wales (NSW), Australia's most populous state, said it found eight cases of COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, mostly from community transmissions believed to have emanated from Victoria.

READ: Australia weighs further COVID-19 curbs as outbreak grows

In a bid to curtail the spread, NSW state Premier Gladys Berejiklian said new restrictions will be imposed from next week.

Funerals and places of worship will be allowed no more than 100 people. Venues must also ensure they have 4 sq m of space per patron.

Weddings in the state will be capped 150 people, Berejiklian said, and they must remain seated.

"No dancing, no singing, no mingling," Berejiklian told reporters in Sydney.

READ: KFC, Pokemon, boozing: Aussies fined for breaking COVID-19 rules

Less than a month ago, Australia was widely heralded as a global leader in combating COVID-19.

But security lapses in Victoria led to people returning from overseas spreading the virus, prompting an inquiry into how the state went from the brink of eradicating the virus to soaring infection numbers.

The surge in COVID-19 cases dents any hope of a quick economic rebound in Australia.

Damaged by national social distancing restrictions imposed in March, Australia is on course for its first recession in nearly three decades, while unemployment has hit a 22-year high, data showed on Thursday.

Australia's hopes to begin a "travel bubble" with neighbouring New Zealand also appear to be delayed. Australia and New Zealand had hoped to open their borders to each other in September.

BOOKMARK THIS: Our comprehensive coverage of the coronavirus outbreak and its developments

Download our app or subscribe to our Telegram channel for the latest updates on the coronavirus outbreak: https://cna.asia/telegram

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2020-07-17 02:48:45Z
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US coronavirus cases shatter records and rise by 75000 in single day - CNA

NEW YORK: The United States shattered its daily record for coronavirus infections on Thursday (Jul 16), reporting more than 77,000 new cases as the number of deaths in a 24-hour period rose by nearly 1,000, according to a Reuters tally.

The loss of 969 lives was the biggest increase since Jun 10, with Florida, South Carolina and Texas all reporting their biggest one-day spikes on Thursday.

More than 138,000 Americans have died from COVID-19, a toll that experts warn will likely surge following recent record spikes in case numbers and an alarming rise in hospitalisations in many states.

READ: More US states mandate masks to staunch COVID-19 pandemic

The hardest-hit areas in Texas and Arizona are running out of places to store bodies as their morgues fill up and are bringing in coolers and refrigerated trailers.

US deaths peaked in April, when the country lost on average 2,000 people a day. Fatalities have steadily fallen, averaging 1,300 a day in May and under 800 a day in June before rising again in July, according to a Reuters tally.

Americans have become increasingly divided on issues such as the reopening of schools and businesses and wearing face masks in public, hindering the fight against the virus.

READ: US announces borders with Mexico, Canada to stay shut until Aug 20

READ: US prepares push to reduce 'unnecessary' COVID-19 testing: Official

The current tally of 77,217 cases surpasses the previous record set last Friday when cases rose by 69,070. In June, cases rose by an average of 28,000 a day, according to a Reuters tally. In July, they have risen by an average of 57,625 a day.

On Thursday, Texas reported more than 15,000 new cases, according to a Reuters tally of county data, while Florida reported nearly 14,000 new cases and California almost 10,000.

Dr Anthony Fauci, the government's top infectious diseases expert, has warned that cases could soon exceed 100,000 a day if Americans do not come together to take steps necessary to halt the spread of the virus.

According to another tally by Johns Hopkins University, the US now has more than 3.57 million COVID-19 cases in total.

BOOKMARK THIS: Our comprehensive coverage of the coronavirus outbreak and its developments

Download our app or subscribe to our Telegram channel for the latest updates on the coronavirus outbreak: https://cna.asia/telegram

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2020-07-17 01:30:00Z
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Resorts World Sentosa Casino, Mustafa Centre, Tekka Centre among places visited by COVID-19 cases while infectious - CNA

SINGAPORE: Several new locations have been added to the list of places visited by COVID-19 cases in the community during their infectious period, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said on Thursday (Jul 16).

The new locations include the Resorts World Sentosa Casino on three different occasions, Mustafa Centre and Tekka Centre on two different occasions.

Several shopping malls were also added to the list - New World Centre, Sembawang Shopping Centre and Northpoint City on two different occasions.

The Traffic Police's headquarters was also added to the list.

UPDATED MAP: All the places that COVID-19 community cases visited while they were infectious

The new locations are as follows:

Those identified as close contacts of confirmed COVID-19 cases would have been notified by MOH, said the ministry.

It added that people who have been at these locations during the specified timings should monitor their health closely for 14 days from their date of visit.

"They should see a doctor promptly if they develop symptoms of acute respiratory infection (such as cough, sore throat and runny nose), as well as fever and loss of taste or smell, and inform the doctor of their exposure history," said MOH.

"There is no need to avoid places where confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been."

The National Environment Agency will also engage the management of affected premises to provide guidance on cleaning and disinfection.

READ: Singapore reports 248 new COVID-19 cases, including 11 in the community

Singapore reported 248 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, bringing the total number of cases in the country to 47,126.

Eleven of the new cases are community infections, involving two Singaporeans, five work pass holders, two work permit holders and two dependant's pass holders.

There were also four imported cases who had been placed on stay-home notice upon arrival in Singapore.

The remaining cases are work permit holders residing in foreign worker dormitories.

BOOKMARK THIS: Our comprehensive coverage of the coronavirus outbreak and its developments

Download our app or subscribe to our Telegram channel for the latest updates on the coronavirus outbreak: https://cna.asia/telegram

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2020-07-16 15:00:15Z
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Jumat, 17 Juli 2020

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Kamis, 16 Juli 2020