Hello and welcome to Al Jazeera’s continuing coverage of the coronavirus pandemic. I’m Kate Mayberry in Kuala Lumpur.Â
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Brazil reported 1,262 deaths from COVID-19 in the 24 hours to Tuesday night, another daily record.
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South Africa has said it has taken note of a High Court judgement declaring its coronavirus restrictions unconstitutional and is studying the judgement. The lockdown will remain in force for now.
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More than 6.3 million coronavirus cases have been confirmed around the world, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. More than 378,000 people have died, including more than 106,000 in the US. More than 2.7 million have recovered from the disease.
Here are the latest updates:
Wednesday, June 3
02:00 GMT – UK government says traveller quarantine crucial to stop second wave
The UK government says the 14-day traveller quarantine it plans to introduce on June 8 is crucial to stop a second wave of coronavirus hitting the country.
Home Minister Priti Patel and Transport Minister Grant Shapps confirmed the plan – despite criticism from airlines, business groups and some members of their own party – in an article published in the Daily Telegraph late on Tuesday.
The two ministers said travel details and contact information would need to be provided, and there would be spot checks and fines to ensure compliance. There had been a lot of “misinformed speculation” about the measures, they added.
The quarantine will apply to all international arrivals including citizens. The UK has the most deaths in the world from coronavirus, after the United States.
01:25 GMT – Malaysia locks down housing estate near Kuala Lumpur airport
Malaysia has imposed a “semi-enhanced” lockdown in two housing estates near the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), according to Malaysiakini.
The two housing areas are surrounded by razor wire and the local health authorities will screen all residents for COVID-19 by Friday. Â
Malaysiakini said the move was believed to be linked to a cluster of 28 coronavirus cases among cleaners working at KLIA.
01:05 GMT – Bolivia feels coronavirus strain as cases exceed 10,000
Authorities in Bolivia are making door-to-door checks in regions with severe coronavirus outbreaks to try and stem the spread of COVID-19.
The landlocked country registered its first novel coronavirus cases on March 10, and until May 21 had reached 5,000 cases. That number has since doubled, government data shows.
More on that story here.
00:00 GMT – Brazil sets another daily record for coronavirus deaths
Some 1,262 people in Brazil died from coronavirus in the 24 hours to Tuesday evening, the country’s Health Ministry said.
It’s another daily record for the South American country where the outbreak shows no sign of slowing down.
Brazil also confirmed 28,936 additional cases of the disease, bringing the total to 555,383. A total of 31,199 people in Brazil have died from coronavirus.
COVID-19 began in the country’s wealthy neighbourhoods and large cities where there were links with international travellers, but the virus is now making its way to poorer and more isolated areas to devastating effect. You can read more on that here.
A patient being treated for coronavirus in the intensive care unit (ICU) of a field hospital in Guarulhos, Sao Paulo state, Brazil [Amanda Perobelli/Reuters]Â
23:30 GMT (Tuesday) – Lancet raises new questions about hydroxychloroquine study
The Lancet has commissioned an independent audit of the data behind a study it published last month that found hydroxycholorquine increased the risk of death in COVID-19 patients.
The May 22 study was based on data provided by healthcare analytics firm Surgisphere and not a traditional clinical trial that would have compared hydroxychloroquine to a placebo or other medicine.
The editors of the British medical journal said serious scientific questions had been brought to their attention.
Several clinical trials into the use of the drug, including one by the World Health Organization, were suspended after the paper was published. Hydroxychloroquine is usually prescribed for illnesses such as malaria or lupus, but has been trumpeted as a COVID-19 treatment by US President Donald Trump and other right-wing leaders.
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Read all the updates from yesterday (June 1) here.
SOURCE:
Al Jazeera and news agencies
