Iraq will re-impose partial lockdown measures until early March after detecting a new strain of the coronavirus, including among children, its health minister announced on Monday.

"Unfortunately, government labs showed genetic mutations in the Covid-19 strain, detecting the new fast-spreading strain in Iraq," Hassan al-Tamimi told reporters.

He referred to the strain as the one "which spread in the UK," and said it had been detected in some Iraqi children, but did not give a total number of people who had been diagnosed with the new variant.

It emerged in southern England in December and is thought to be more contagious than earlier forms.

Iraq has been among the countries hardest-hit by coronavirus in the Middle East, with more than 640,000 reported cases and over 13,000 deaths.

After peaking in September at around 5,000 new cases per day, Iraq saw a remarkable drop with around 800 new cases a day in December but the numbers have been on the rise since then.

On Monday, Iraq announced more than 2,700 cases confirmed cases, a record since the start of the year.

The daily deaths have remained relatively low, with only six confirmed deaths on Monday -- compared to a peak in September of around 70 deaths per day.

The rise in cases prompted authorities to re-impose a series of measures to tackle the virus until March 8.

Masks will be obligatory in public places, with a fine of 25,000 Iraqi dinar ($17) for any violators.

From Thursday an overnight curfew will be in place from 8:00 pm until 5:00 am while Iraqis will be subjected to full lockdowns on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

The measures will still be in place during Pope Francis' historic visit from March 5-8, which will include trips to Baghdad, the city of Mosul in the north and a meeting with the country's top Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani.

Iraqi officials told AFP on Monday they were still proceeding with the visit as planned.

Peru names 6th FM in under a year as vaccine scandal grows
Lima (AFP) Feb 16, 2021 - Peru on Monday appointed its sixth foreign minister in less than a year following a fresh resignation over a growing coronavirus vaccinations scandal.

Veteran diplomat Allan Wagner, 79, was sworn in less than 24 hours after Elizabeth Astete became the second top official to step down over the scandal.

Peru has been gripped in recent days by the news that government officials received the Covid-19 vaccination weeks or even months before the South American country launched its immunization program.

Health minister Pilar Mazzetti stepped down last week following a newspaper report that former president Martin Vizcarra had received a shot of the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine in October.

Peru only began its immunization drive, starting with healthcare workers, in early February after receiving 300,000 doses of vaccine.

But there is still no official start date for the immunization of the general population.

Peruvian media reported at the weekend that Attorney General Zoraida Avalos had opened a "preliminary investigation" against Vizcarra and others responsible for the early vaccination of senior officials.

Astete tweeted on Sunday that she received the shot last month, calling it a "serious mistake" and saying she would not get the second dose.

Vizcarra, who was impeached and removed from office in November, insists he took part in a vaccine trial and had kept the news quiet due to volunteer "confidentiality."

However, the university leading the trial on Sunday denied Vizcarra had been a volunteer, a statement to which he expressed "great surprise" while reiterating his claim.

Vizcarra, who left office with high approval ratings, apologized Monday to his compatriots "for not having reported that fact at that time," but insisted again that he had volunteered for the trial, along with his wife and brother.

"I submit to the investigations in order to clarify this situation," he added, denying that he had "lied" or committed a crime.

- An 'ethical issue' -

The Chinese embassy said in a statement that it did not have information on the identity of those vaccinated, since the trial was conducted by Peruvian universities, and rejected the use of "terms such as courtesy vaccines, donations or perks" used by Peruvian media.

The scandal comes with Peru suffering from Latin America's second wave of the coronavirus pandemic.

The country of 33 million has recorded more than 1.2 million cases and more than 43,700 deaths from Covid-19.

While leaders and government ministers in some other countries made a public display of getting vaccinated to encourage nervous citizens about safety concerns, the secrecy surrounding Peru's top officials getting the shots early has sparked criticism among ordinary folk.

"It is a more ethical issue. You and your family cannot get vaccinated when there are people on the front line, doctors, who have died," worker Anais Rojas told AFP.

"I do not see (this matter) as a priority at this time, given the situation we are in, (but) I believe that an investigation should be done," said Kevin Calero, an administrative employee.

Wagner was previously foreign minister from 1985-88 and then again from 2002-03.

A career diplomat who entered the foreign office in 1963, he was previously defense minister and ambassador to the US and the Netherlands.

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WHO expert slams US pandemic intel as curbs tightened in Europe
Wuhan, China (AFP) Feb 10, 2021
A WHO expert sent to China to probe the coronavirus hit out at US intelligence on Covid-19 as his team headed home with few answers about the origin of a pandemic that was forcing more clampdowns in some of the hardest-hit parts of the world. German Chancellor Angela Merkel was set to seek an extension of strict virus curbs, as the European Commission chief addressed the stumbling vaccination rollout on the continent - which accounts for a third of the 2.3 million Covid-19 deaths worldwide. The ... read more