Thailand enacted a strict nationwide ban on public gatherings as Southeast Asia continues to suffer a devastating COVID surge, with Indonesia recently reporting higher daily case numbers than India and Brazil. Iran has put Tehran and surrounding areas on lockdown ahead of the Eid al-Adha holidays amid a spike in cases. Meanwhile, France launched its highly contested “health pass” as officials issued warnings over the current outbreak. This is French Health Minister Olivier Véran.

Olivier Véran: “Yesterday, there were 18,000 new infections in only 24 hours. It means that the spread of the virus has increased by 150% over a week. We have never seen this before.”