Finland on Thursday registered a record number of new coronavirus infections in the space of a day, driven by the highly contagious Delta variant, the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare said.
The total of 1,024 new infections beat a peak hit in March this year. Hospital admissions also increased.
Prime Minister Sanna Marin announced plans a week ago to make Finns show proof of vaccination before visiting restaurants and other leisure services, as well as to start vaccinating 12- to 16-year-olds.
While Finland remains among the countries least affected by the pandemic, infections began to rise in June and accelerated further in July when soccer fans returned home from Euro 2020 matches abroad.
To date, the nation of 5.5 million people has recorded 109,983 cases and 995 deaths. There are currently 83 people in hospital with COVID-19.
More than 82% of Finns have now received at least one vaccine dose and more than 48% are fully vaccinated against the coronavirus, according to data from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.
Photo: A view of hand sanitizing symbol at Helsinki-Vantaa airport near Helsinki, Finland. EPA-EFE/MAURI RATILAINEN
The World Health Organization said on Friday that there were 906 suspected cases of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo, including 223 suspected deaths that were being investigate...
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa condemned Moscow Friday morning after a Russian drone struck an apartment building in east...
Morning Briefing
Man fined €10,000 for illegally keeping tiger in Marsaskala
A 52-year-old man from Attard has been fined €10,000 after a court found him guilty of illegally keepin...
Updated 1145
Gozo Launches Fully Electric Public Bus Fleet: Gozo’s entire public transport fleet is now operating with electric buses following an €11 million investment announced by ...
Former Polish president and anti-communist icon Lech Wałęsa was among the first recipients of the newly established European Order of Merit, receiving the EU’s highest distinction during...
The European Parliament has thrown its weight behind demands for a bigger long-term EU budget, approving its position for negotiations on the bloc’s next seven-year financial framework f...
Oil prices jumped more than 3% on Thursday after Iran's Revolutionary Guards said they targeted a U.S. airbase in response to a U.S. attack near Bandar Abbas airport.
Brent crude fu...
Oil prices pulled back from recent highs on Wednesday, erasing some of the previous day's 4% gain as traders sought clarity on complex negotiations between Iran and the U.S. after rene...
“A company’s workplace culture praised by management, needs to be taken with caution. But when the recognition comes directly from employees, that carries greater weight,” says JONATHAN ...
EU lawmakers have approved new rules aimed at strengthening how failing banks are managed, extending protections to a wider range of institutions and depositors across the bloc.
The p...
GO plc, Malta's leading integrated communications and digital services group, today held its Annual General Meeting, where shareholders were presented with a landmark set of financial re...
Pharmaceutical and medical devices company Vivian has reported a 28.8% reduction in energy consumption over the past year, significantly surpassing the 5% benchmark required to qualify f...
The United States and Iran reached an agreement on Thursday to extend their ceasefire and lift restrictions on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, sources told Reuters, though U.S. P...
The United States has accused Iran of carrying out an “egregious ceasefire violation” after Tehran allegedly launched strikes on Kuwait overnight, raising fresh doubts over the durabilit...
Thousands of Cuban security personnel have begun leaving Caracas after nearly two decades in Venezuela, as Washington ramps up efforts to dismantle the long standing alliance between the...
María Corina Machado is a prominent figure in Venezuela’s opposition. She has reported that one of her closest associates, Juan Pablo Guanipa, was abducted. This occurred mere hours afte...
Ukraine's parliament ratified on Thursday a €90 billion ($104 billion) loan agreement with the European Union with 298 votes, well ahead of the 226 votes required for a m...
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said that Russia was seeking to draw Belarus deeper into its war in Ukraine and was weighing plans to attack Ukraine's north or a NATO country from Belarus...
