World Status Report

This report intends to give the UTD Community a snapshot of international risks, and other issues as reported by the linked official sources from the U.S. and other countries.

More health and security information for each country can be found in the travel advisories issued by the governments of the United States, Canada, the UK, New Zealand, and Australia, and the CDC, ECDC, and WHO sites. Not all advise in these sites will apply to US travelers.

Please note the publication date of this report, and go to the direct sources linked for the most up-to-date information.  The information in this report may change without prior notice.

Security

• Afghanistan. The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) on Tuesday called for an immediate end to fighting in urban areas, as the Taliban continues a ground assault in the south of the country (UN News).
• Cameroon. Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) an International NGO has withdrawn its teams from the North-West region of Cameroon after medical areas have been badly affected by armed violence between security forces and armed separatist groups and after nearly eight months of suspension by the Cameroonian authorities (HumAngle).
• Israel-Lebanon. Three rockets were fired from Lebanon into Israeli territory Wednesday and the army responded with sustained artillery fire, Israel’s military said. There was no immediate information on damages or casualties (AP).

Natural Disasters

• Bangladesh. The heavy monsoon rainfall and strong winds since 27 July have heavily impacted the Rohingya refugee camps and host communities in Cox’s Bazar. At least 21 people have died and over 21,000 refugees have been displaced. There has been extensive damage to refugee shelters, roads, primary health clinics, distribution points and latrines (ERCC).
• Greece. A significant fire has been burning across the northern suburbs of Athens close to Mount Parnitha since 3 August. Greek Civil Protection authorities report 81 forest fires in the country over the past 24 hours (ERCC).
• North Macedonia. A number of wildfires are burning in the east and north-east of the country. People were evacuated from Kochani City (north-east North Macedonia) as the fire approached urban areas (ERCC).
• Albania has experienced over 124 fires in recent weeks following sustained high temperatures, with the Vlora region facing the most critical situation (ERCC).

Health

• The Dominican Republic is restricting pig shipments and mobilizing the military to contain the spread of African swine fever, the agriculture ministry said Thursday, as the United States and Mexico tightened border checks to avoid infections (Reuters).

Developments

• European Union. By the end of next year, travelers from visa-free countries, will have to apply for an ETIAS online before travelling to any of the EU Member States (Schengenvisainfo).
• United Kingdom. A large English prevalence study has found that fully-vaccinated people have around a 50-60% reduced risk of infection from COVID-19, including those who are asymptomatic (Reuters).

COVID-19

International preventative measures against COVID-19, including entry restrictions and in-country mobility remain fluid, and can be imposed without prior notice.  The UNWTO and IATA Destination Tracker offers relevant information on a destination status. The Timeline of EU Member States Reopening Their Borders offers a list of opened EU countries for travelers, and dates of warned opening.

As notable cases:

• Vietnam will cut the duration of mandatory quarantine for fully vaccinated visitors from two weeks to just seven days, its health ministry has said (Guardian).
• Japan has carried out a threat to publicly shame people not complying with coronavirus border control measures, releasing the names of three people who broke quarantine rules after returning from overseas (Guardian).
• Belgium‘s northern region could relax coronavirus restrictions faster than the rest of the country, amid a growing gap in vaccination rates across the country (Guardian).
• Israel, home to one of the world’s most successful vaccination drives, has decided to reinstate several restrictions to combat coronavirus amid a wave of rising infections (Guardian).
• China shuts down transport routes as it battles worst Covid outbreak in months (Guardian).
• Brazil is preparing to suspend most limitations on businesses and gatherings as Covid cases and deaths drop to the lowest in months while vaccinations pick up speed (Bloomberg)
• United States. New York has become the first major US city to require proof of COVID-19 vaccination at restaurants, gyms and other businesses (Reuters).

Global cases and deaths. As of 04 August, Johns Hopkins University counts 199,793,083 COVID-19 cases and 4,251,050 deaths, and the WHO COVID-19 dashboard reports as of 03 August 198,778,175 cases and 4,235,559 deaths.

As notable cases:

• Indonesia’s Covid-19 death toll has surpassed 100,000 fatalities, CNBC Indonesia reports, citing health ministry data (Guardian).
• Japan. Tokyo confirmed a record high of 4,166 new daily Covid infections today as the virus continues to surge against the backdrop of the games (Guardian).
• Russia has reported 22,589 new Covid-19 cases, including 2,502 in the capital, Moscow (Guardian).
• Macau ordered compulsory coronavirus testing for all residents on Wednesday after a family of four was found to be carrying the Delta variant, breaking the city’s record of over 16 months virus-free (Guardian).
• Thailand has reported 20,200 new Covid cases and 188 deaths – both records since the start of the pandemic last year, increasing the likelihood that virus-related restrictions will be extended (Guardian).
• South Korea reported 1,725 cases on Wednesday, an increase of more than 500 on the previous day (Guardian).
• China. A quickly evolving Delta outbreak that began in Nanjing, the capital of Jiangsu province on China’s east-central coast, has now triggered clusters in at least 30 cities, up from 13 cities last week (WaPo).
• Sudan. Health care workers and researchers told the Telegraph that a hidden pandemic had probably killed thousands if not tens of thousands more (Telegraph).
• Australia has reported one of its youngest COVID-19-related deaths, a man in his 20s, who had no underlying health issues and was unvaccinated (Reuters).
• Turkey‘s new COVID-19 cases in  jumped to nearly 25,000 yesterday, the highest level in almost three months (Reuters).
• Mexico has reported 18,911 new confirmed COVID-19 cases and 657 deaths. The government has said the real number of cases is likely much higher (Reuters).

Vaccination campaigns around the world continue. As of 03 August, Our World in Data reports 29% of the world population has received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, and 14.8% is fully vaccinated. 4.25 billion doses have been administered globally, and 38.47 million are now administered each day. Only 1.1% of people in low-income countries have received at least one dose. The WHO COVID-19 dashboard reports as of 03 August over 3.88 billion administered vaccine doses.

As notable cases:

• United States. The Biden administration is preparing to offer coronavirus vaccines to migrants in US custody along the Mexico border, the Washington Post reports (Guardian).
• Ukraine has received 500,000 doses of Covid-19 vaccines from Denmark, the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said on Wednesday (Guardian).

Please note the publication date of this report and go to the direct sources linked for the most up-to-date information.  The information in this report may change without prior notice.