All the coronavirus indicators have been sliding slowly but surely as Pakistan has logged another 755 coronavirus infections and seven deaths during the last 24 hours (Saturday), showed the data released by the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) on Sunday morning.

As per the latest NCOC statistics, after the addition of seven new deaths, the overall toll has now surged to 30,265 whereas the number of total infections now stood at 1,514,258 after adding the fresh 755 cases.

During the last 24 hours (Saturday), 37,661 tests were conducted throughout Pakistan whereas the positivity ratio stood at 2.0 percent. The number of patients in critical care was 821.

https://twitter.com/OfficialNcoc/status/1500276753901789194

During the last 24 hours (Saturday), as many as 886 patients have recovered from the virus whereas the total recoveries stood at 1,454,382. As of Sunday, the total count of active cases in the country was recorded at 29,611.

As many as 569,978 coronavirus cases have so far been confirmed in Sindh, 502,621 in Punjab, 216,983 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 134,620 in Islamabad, 35,380 in Balochistan, 43,106 in Azad Kashmir and 11,570 in Gilgit-Baltistan.

Moreover, 13,520 individuals have lost their lives to the pandemic in Punjab so far, 8,085 in Sindh, 6,288 in KP, 1,017 in Islamabad, 788 in Azad Kashmir, 376 in Balochistan and 191 in Gilgit Baltistan.

Hong Kong suspends court system as virus crisis deepens

Hong Kong on Friday announced it would suspend court services for a month as the city recorded more than 50,000 new coronavirus cases for the third consecutive day.

The finance hub is in the throes of its worst outbreak to date, overwhelming hospitals and shattering the city's zero-Covid strategy.

The judiciary said it would adjourn most hearings between March 7 and April 11 after "striking a balance between public health considerations and due administration of justice".

Authorities said on Wednesday around 1,000 prisoners have tested positive and local media reported that judges had also been infected.

The suspension excludes ongoing hearings and urgent applications while some in-person proceedings will be dealt with on paper instead.

The judiciary added that it may need to further cut back operations in light of the mandatory virus testing slated for the city's entire population later this month.

Hong Kong on Friday saw 52,523 new infections bringing the total to more than 390,000 since the highly transmissible Omicron variant broke through.

There have been 1,341 deaths in the latest wave among a population of 7.4 million, with more than half of the deceased being elderly people living in care homes.

While nearly 90 percent of Hong Kong residents have received at least one vaccine dose, the figure falls to 67 percent for those aged 70 or above.

Coronavirus cases have been found in more than 70 percent of Hong Kong's elderly care homes, with at least 13 percent of residents infected, officials said Friday.

Hong Kong has called on the help of mainland Chinese authorities to contain the worsening crisis, with Chinese personnel crossing the border to help construct medical facilities and increase testing capacity.

Xia Baolong, Beijing's top official overseeing Hong Kong affairs, said Thursday that local authorities must "shoulder arduous responsibility" to fight the epidemic, according to Chinese state media.

Xia also called on Hong Kong officials to "forcefully expose, criticise and sanction" anti-China forces in order to maintain stability in the city.

Meanwhile, one of Hong Kong's largest supermarket chains and a major pharmacy chain both announced rationing of staple goods after facing a wave of panic buying this week.

Some supermarket shelves have been stripped bare in the wake of mixed messaging from Hong Kong's top officials on whether there will be a lockdown.

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam said the government will conduct citywide virus testing this month and that measures will be taken to reduce the public's movement, though no details have been announced.

Lam promised this week that Hong Kong would not go into "wholesale city lockdown" during the testing.

Ireland's president isolating with Covid: office

Ireland's President Michael D. Higgins has tested positive for coronavirus and is displaying mild symptoms of Covid-19, a spokesman for his office said on Friday.

Higgins, 80, and his wife, Sabina, tested positive ahead of a visit to a school in a north Dublin suburb, the spokesman added.  

"President and Sabina Higgins, having displayed mild Covid-19 symptoms this morning and having taken antigen tests that have tested positive, will be isolating for the next seven days," the his office said. 

"The president while isolating is continuing to work from home."

It was believed this is the first time the Irish president has tested positive for Covid.

As president in Ireland, Higgins' constitutional role is a chiefly ceremonial one and he is generally required to remain above party politics.

An academic and former government minister, elected twice to the role in 2011 and 2018, Higgins is seen as a unifying figure.

A man of short stature, he has become recognisable on the international stage for his use of poetry and fondness for his pet Bernese Mountain Dogs, which have stolen the limelight at addresses and functions.

At the height of the pandemic Ireland endured some of Europe's longest and strictest coronavirus restrictions, but most  have been lifted.

On Monday, the mandatory requirement to wear masks in shops and schools was removed. However, rules to isolate after a positive test remain in place.

With inputs from AFP.