The World Health Organization (WHO) is worried about the spread of the coronavirus in Afghanistan as the upheaval caused by the Taliban advance and seizure of power has slowed vaccinations, a spokesperson said on Tuesday.
"As the situation in Afghanistan continues to deteriorate rapidly, WHO is extremely concerned over the unfolding safety and humanitarian needs in the country, including risk of disease outbreaks and rise in Covid-19 transmission," Tarik Jasarevic told a UN briefing.
WHO mobile health teams have been on hold in the capital for the past 24 hours due to the insecurity and the unpredictable situation, he said.
Chaos at Kabul airport, where thousands of people have been seeking to flee the Taliban, was slowing deliveries of medical supplies, worsening existing shortages. Jasarevic said the WHO, like those of other UN agencies, was committed to remain in the country.
NZ snap lockdown
New Zealand moves into a three-day lockdown after identifying a single case of locally transmitted Covid-19 suspected to be the Delta variant, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says.
Japan prolongs emergency
Japan's government says it will expand a virus state of emergency to seven new regions as it battles a record wave of infections a week before the Paralympic Games.
India vaccinations near record
India administered more than 8.8 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines in the past 24 hours, government data showed, close to its all-time record and speeding up a campaign to inoculate all eligible adults by December.
Pfizer pushes for third jab
Pfizer and BioNTech submit preliminary clinical data to US health authorities as part of their effort to seek authorization for a third dose of their Covid-19 vaccine for all Americans.
Unjabbed in Australia
There is "enormous concern" over an outbreak in Australian Indigenous communities, authorities say, prompting them to deploy military personnel to deliver vaccines to the largely unjabbed population.
In Sydney, Covid-19 cases are set to "rise substantially" in the coming weeks despite a prolonged lockdown, authorities said, warning soaring infections have already put hospitals under enormous strain.
Over 4.3 million dead
The coronavirus has killed at least 4,387,555 and infected over 208 million people since the outbreak emerged in China in December 2019, according to an AFP compilation of official data.
The US is the worst-affected country with 638,801 deaths, followed by Brazil with 569,581, India with 432,112, Mexico with 248,652 and Peru with 197,487.
