Friday's key coronavirus developments from Luxembourg and abroad

Starting with Luxembourg

• The latest figures from Luxembourg show that 636 new cases of coronavirus were discovered over the last 24 hours.

• The Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Jean Asselborn tested positive for Covid-19 on Thursday evening.

• Minister for Family Affairs Corinne Cahen is 'not concerned' about staff shortages ahead of the planned introduction of a vaccine mandate in the care sector.

• Since the start of the pandemic in March 2020, more than 145 children have been hospitalised at the Children's Hospital (Kannerklinik) to treat symptoms due to an acute coronavirus infection.

• On Thursday, Virologist Dr Thomas Dentzer and Psychologist Dr Charel Benoy hosted one of the National Health Directorate's regular Q&A livestreams on Facebook.

And abroad

• Canadian police on Friday began a massive operation to clear the trucker-led protests against Covid health rules clogging the capital for three weeks, with several arrests made and trucks towed away.

• Hong Kong's foreign domestic workers are being "abandoned" in the current coronavirus wave sweeping the city, with some forced to sleep rough or being denied treatment after testing positive, charities warned Friday.

• Six African countries have been chosen to establish their own mRNA vaccine production, the World Health Organization said Friday, with the continent largely shut out of access to Covid jabs.

• After a surge which lasted for three-and-a-half months, the average number of global daily cases dropped for a third week in a row, falling back by 22 percent to 1.97 million, according to an AFP tally to Thursday.

• Germany's health minister Karl Lauterbach has warned federal states that dropping all restrictions too quickly could result in another increase in infections. He also wants to avoid states "racing" as to whome loosens restrictions the earliest, or using them as a political tool.