The British government was criticized by lawmakers in its own party on Sunday after a mounting row over English exam grades awarded during the COVID-19 pandemic intensified, in the latest hit to its reputation.
New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Monday postponed the general election by four weeks to Oct 17 but ruled out delaying it any further, as the country tackles a new outbreak of the coronavirus.
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro received the best approval rating of his term on Friday, boosted by his popularity among recipients of COVID-19 stimulus payments despite the carnage the pandemic has caused in Brazil.
Health care workers in Peru held a demonstration demanding better pay and working conditions as more of their colleagues become infected with the coronavirus. Members of medical workers’ unions appealed for government help during a rally outside the Health Ministry.
Spanish authorities ordered the closure of nightclubs, banned drinking in outdoor public areas, and smoking when keeping a safe distance from people is impossible, among other measures imposed on Friday to try to stem a coronavirus resurgence.
Argentina extended until Aug 30 restrictions taken against the coronavirus, President Alberto Fernandez said on Friday, underlining that the country's lockdown would continue in its current form in and around capital city Buenos Aires.
The European Union has agreed to buy at least 300 million doses of AstraZeneca's potential COVID-19 vaccine in its first such advance purchase deal, which could weaken plans led by the World Health Organization (WHO) for a global approach.
Chilean President Sebastian Pinera said on Friday that more than one million people had received the government's US$ 626 spot payment aimed at staving off the economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic and it had approved more than 550,000 requests for soft loans of up to US$ 815.
The US Department of Homeland Security said on Friday that a COVID-19 ban on non-essential travel through border crossings with Canada and Mexico was being extended until Sep 21.
Peru surpassed half a million coronavirus cases and has the highest death toll in Latin America, according to Health Ministry data released on Thursday, as the government struggles to contain a recent surge in infections.