France has recently entered in a new lockdown as the resurgent coronavirus pandemic increasingly forced other countries to consider following suit, with Europe passing 10 million total infections and the United States posting a daily record of 90,000 cases.
Just days before the US presidential election, the country recorded 91,295 new cases in 24 hours, surging past the 90,000-mark for the first time to a total of almost nine million. President Donald Trump has continued to downplay the dangers of the virus, telling a cheering crowd at a Tampa rally that lockdowns under his Democrat rival Joe Biden would banish normal life.
Italy posted its own daily infection record on Friday, fuelling debate about whether it should follow France into a national lockdown.
A new US government study meanwhile found that people infected with Covid-19 infect around half of the members of their household, with adults only slightly more likely than children to spread the virus.
In the French capital Paris, some medics voiced fears that steady traffic and appreciable numbers of people on public transport showed the public was not taking the lockdown as seriously a second time round.
According to a poll by Odoxa-Dentsu Consulting for France Info and Le Figaro, seven out of 10 people in France are in favour of the new lockdown, which is scheduled to last a month with bars and restaurants closed until at least December and travel between regions limited.
Factories and building sites will remain open, as will creches and schools -- although children aged six and up must wear masks in class.
President Emmanuel Macron has warned that the second wave "will probably be more difficult and deadly than the first" in a country that has already seen 36,000 deaths.
According to an AFP tally, Europe has again become the epicentre of the pandemic, recording 40 percent more cases this week than the previous seven days.
Nottingham became the latest of a swathe of cities across central and northern England to enter the highest tier of local restrictions Friday, with the 2.4 million residents of Leeds set to follow next week.
In Germany, Chancellor Angela Merkel has ordered a lighter round of shutdowns from Monday, closing bars, cafes and restaurants, as well as theatres, operas and cinemas. Czech Republic lawmakers voted to extend a state of emergency until November 20, while Iceland ordered bars and nightclubs closed and limited public gatherings to no more than 10 people.
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