Coronavirus: South Korea tops 1 million cases; Malaysia set to hit 15,000 cases a day
- Daily cases are nearly five times higher than two weeks ago, when the Omicron variant began to dominate in South Korea, but deaths have remained low
- Elsewhere, Malaysia set to hit 15,000 cases a day; Australia planning to reopen its borders to tourists; schools in Nepal demand reopening as cases decline
An aggressive strategy of tracking, tracing, masking and quarantining helped South Korea to blunt that initial wave and keep overall cases and deaths low without widespread lockdowns, but the spread of the Omicron variant is driving case numbers to new highs.
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South Korea’s small business owners shave their heads in protest against curfew to contain Covid-19
Deaths have remained low in the highly vaccinated country, however, with 15 new deaths reported as of midnight Saturday, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency.
Daily cases are nearly five times higher than two weeks ago, when the Omicron variant began to dominate, but serious infections have remained at manageable levels so far, authorities have said.
Officials on Friday announced they would extend social distancing measures for at least another two weeks, including a 9pm curfew on businesses and a six-person limit for private gatherings.