Covid-19 Pandemic Update: More than 1.67 million deaths worldwide

Here are the new highlights on the latest developments of the Covid-19 pandemic in the world.

More than 1.67 million deaths: The pandemic has caused more than 1,675,362 deaths in the world, according to a report established by AFP from official sources on Saturday.

The United States remains the most affected country both in number of deaths (313,660) and recorded cases (17,465,147), followed by Brazil (185,650), India (145,136), Mexico (117,249), and Italy (67,894).

London reconfined: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced Saturday the reconfinement of London and south-east England from Sunday to try to stem a surge in contamination attributed to a new strain of the new coronavirus. Already subjected to restrictive restrictions, the inhabitants of the capital and the south-east zone will be placed under a new alert level, the fourth and higher.  They will be instructed to stay in their homes and non-essential businesses will be shut down, putting an end to last-minute Christmas shopping.

Italy "red" for the holidays : The Italian Prime Minister has announced a graduated containment plan from December 21 to January 6 to reduce travel and gatherings during the holiday season.

All of Italy will be classified as "red", the strictest level of containment, for the Christmas and New Year holidays, but Italians will be allowed to leave their homes for a family meal with limited cover, a decree issued Saturday said. Italians will be allowed to travel once a day in their region to visit relatives or friends outside the existing curfew (10:00-5:00 p.m.). 

Local containment in Thailand: Thailand on Saturday imposed a containment around the country's largest seafood market near Bangkok, where a local resurgence of the outbreak was detected. Authorities announced 548 new cases of contamination linked to the shellfish market in Mahachai, less than an hour's drive from the center of the capital.

Switzerland authorizes Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine: Switzerland on Saturday became the first state in continental Europe to authorize a vaccine against Covid-19, Pfizer/BioNTech. Switzerland's decision follows approvals for the same vaccine from more than 15 countries, including the United States, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Kingdom, Jordan, Singapore, Mexico and the United States.

Moderna vaccine shipped to the United States : The first doses of vaccine from the Moderna laboratory began being shipped Saturday to various points in the United States, joining the Pfizer/BioNTech alliance in the massive immunization campaign that began Monday. A week after Pfizer and BioNTech, Moderna received emergency approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Friday.

Macron's "stable state of health": Emmanuel Macron's state of health is "stable" and the results of his clinical and paraclinical examinations "have proved reassuring," the chief medical officer of the French presidency announced on Saturday in a statement. Macron, who tested positive for Covid-19, spoke on Saturday on the phone with his Algerian counterpart Abelmadjid Tebboune, 75, still convalescing in Germany after contracting the virus in October.