Here are the latest COVID-19 updates from Japan and beyond:
People wearing face masks amid the coronavirus pandemic walk in Tokyo's Shinjuku area on July 28, 2021, with banners of the Tokyo Olympics seen in the background. Japan's daily total of COVID-19 cases topped 9,000 for the first time the same day, with a surge in infections in the capital where the Summer Games opened the previous week without spectators at almost all venues. (Kyodo)(TOPPAGE) ==Kyodo
As of 11 p.m., Thursday, July 29
- The government is planning to add three prefectures neighboring Tokyo, as well as Osaka Prefecture, to areas under the COVID-19 state of emergency amid a resurgence of the coronavirus, a government source said.
- Japan's daily total of COVID-19 cases topped 10,000 for the first time on Thursday, with Tokyo experiencing surging infections, casting a pall over the Olympics.
- The Tokyo metropolitan government confirmed a record 3,865 daily coronavirus cases Thursday, with surging infections in the capital casting a pall over the Olympics.
- Thailand and Indonesia have begun recommending U.S.- and European-made coronavirus vaccines to their populations after seeing some deaths among those inoculated with Chinese vaccines amid the spread of the highly transmissible Delta variant.
- The Tokyo Olympic organizing committee on Thursday reported 24 more COVID-19 cases associated with the games, the highest in a 24-hour span since infections began being compiled from the start of this month.
- Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken affirmed Wednesday cooperation in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic and efforts to bring peace to Afghanistan.
- People who volunteered for the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics but whose stints have been canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic have joined a project to sing the anthems of 204 countries and regions taking part in the Summer Games.
As of 11 p.m., Wednesday, July 28
- Japan's daily total of COVID-19 cases topped 9,000 for the first time on Wednesday, with a surge in infections in Tokyo casting a pall over the Olympics and putting pressure on the government of Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga to take stronger countermeasures.
- Sixteen more people associated with the Tokyo Olympics have tested positive for COVID-19, but none are athletes, bringing the total since the start of this month to 169, games organizers said Wednesday.
- Journalists traveling to the Tokyo Olympics from overseas have been largely accepting of how the games are being staged amid the coronavirus pandemic, acknowledging the challenges of conducting such a massive event under difficult circumstances.
- U.S. health authorities said Tuesday that they will now ask people to wear masks indoors in parts of the country where coronavirus cases are surging even if vaccinated, citing concerns over the highly contagious Delta variant.
Japan and beyond: Week in Photos - July 17~23
Media people from overseas covering the Tokyo Olympics drink alcohol on a street in Tokyo's Koto Ward on July 26, 2021. Bars and restaurants in Tokyo are prohibited from serving liquor as the capital is under a state of emergency amid the COVID-19 pandemic. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo
Useful resources for foreign residents and visitors in Japan
- Tokyo Metropolitan Government's "Tokyo Coronavirus Support Center for Foreign Residents (TOCOS)" multilingual hotline
- Available in Simple Japanese, English, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Nepali, Indonesian, Tagalog, Thai, Portuguese, Spanish, French, Khmer, and Burmese, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays except national holidays.
0120-296-004 (toll free)
https://www.seikatubunka.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/chiiki_tabunka/tabunka/tabunkasuishin/0000001452.html - AMDA Medical Information Center's "Multilingual Consultation Service"
- Available in Simple Japanese and English, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays. Also available in Chinese, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish, Tagalog, Thai, and Vietnamese on designated weekdays. Check schedule here.
03-6233-9266 - Tokyo Metropolitan Government's COVID-19 info
https://stopcovid19.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/en/ - Tokyo Metropolitan Government hotline
https://stopcovid19.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/en/contacts
- Available in English, Chinese, Korean and Japanese, 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. (including weekends and holidays)
0570-550571
- Available via fax for those with hearing impairments
03-5388-1396 - Japan National Tourism Organization's "Guide for when you are feeling ill"
- Multilingual clinic/hospital search available in English, Korean, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Japanese
https://www.jnto.go.jp/emergency/eng/mi_guide.html - JNTO's "Japan Visitor Hotline"
https://www.japan.travel/en/plan/hotline/
- Available in English, Chinese, Korean and Japanese 24 hours a day
050-3816-2787
+81-50-3816-2787 (from overseas) - Japan's health ministry hotline
- Available in Japanese only, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
0120-565653 - World Health Organization's "Q&A on coronaviruses"
https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/q-a-coronaviruses
