Daily roundupTuesday's key coronavirus developments from Luxembourg and abroad

Starting with Luxembourg

• The latest figures from Luxembourg show that 209 new cases of coronavirus were discovered over the last 24 hours.

• The Luxembourg government has launched a country-wide testing week. Every household received an invitation to pick up five free rapid tests from a pharmacy.

• Partial unemployment has been extended until February 2022. Meanwhile, many employees have reportedly already announced to their employers that they will be off sick after the compulsory CovidCheck at the workplace is implemented on 15 January.

• At around 700, the incidence rate is currently especially high in primary schools. But experts believe the peak to have been passed.

• The Alternative Democratic Reform Party (adr) questioned Saturday’s police intervention on several points.

And abroad

• Two shots of Pfizer’s Covid vaccine offers around 70 percent protection against severe disease from Omicron, according to results of a study published Tuesday in South Africa.

• Hunger in Africa has worsened significantly with an almost 50 percent rise in those considered undernourished compared to 2014, the UN said. The economic downturn that led to hunger was partly blamed on the pandemic.

• Australia will push ahead with plans to ease Covid restrictions before Christmas, officials said Tuesday, even as new coronavirus cases in the country’s most populous state reached a 10-week high.

• Fact check: Several images have been shared repeatedly in posts that claim British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Covid-19 booster shot was “faked”. Meanwhile, Johnson faces a backlash from his own MPs in parliament over new coronavirus restrictions, as he battles a slump in support and questions about his future.

• In Norway, bars and restaurants will not be able to serve alcohol, remote working will be compulsory where possible, mask mandates will be extended and access to public swimming pools and gyms restricted. The new measures are expected to last four weeks.

• Hong Kong’s central bank confirmed Tuesday that its officials sent care package goodies to high profile executives in quarantine as the business community’s frustrations grow over the city’s international isolation.