TOP HEADLINES

• Romanian doctors sent an open letter titled "A cry of despair" regarding how the country is overwhelmed and its deteriorating health care system is struggling to cope with a record surge of coronavirus infections and deaths. The College of Physicians of Bucharest, a non-governmental organization representing doctors in Romania's capital, said in the letter that the medical system has "reached the limit" and that low vaccination rates reveal a "failure of trust" between doctors and the population. 

• Scientists across the globe have received threats of death and sexual assault after speaking to the media about COVID-19, according to a new survey. Nature Magazine asked 3,321 scientists, and 15 percent said that they had received death threats and 22 percent had been threatened with physical or sexual violence because they have talked publicly about the pandemic. Two-thirds also said that they had a negative experience after appearing in the media. 

• Russia has once again set a new daily record for COVID-19 cases and deaths, with more than 30,000 cases being officially reported in a single day for the first time. There was a jump of around 2,500 cases from the previous day to 31,299 new cases reported - 986 deaths were also recorded. 

• Lateral flow tests (LFTs) are very good at detecting people most likely to spread COVID-19 and positive results should be trusted, according to a study by University College London. Confidence has been undermined where a positive LFT result has been followed by a negative PCR test result. However, the UCL study found that LFTs were 80 percent effective at detecting any level of COVID-19 infection, and that they are more than 90 percent effective at detecting who is most infectious.

• Italy will become the first European country to require the so-called green pass, which is digital or paper proof of vaccination, immunity or a negative test in the past 48 hours, in all places of work, both private and public. This is one step short of fully mandating vaccines, a move which the country's Prime Minister Mario Draghi openly considered a month ago. These measures, which are some of the strictest in Europe, come after protests in Rome against coronavirus restrictions. 

• The French government will ask lawmakers to extend its pandemic state of emergency until July 31 next year to deal with the ongoing coronavirus crisis, according to spokesman Gabriel Attal. This extension would mean that the government will keep the power to extend or reinstate restrictive measure such as the use of a health pass to gain access to restaurants, bars and cinemas. The state of emergency and health pass requirement are currently due to expire on November 15. 

• New cases in Hungary have risen above 1,000 for the first time during the current wave of cases. The country's foreign minister Peter Szijjarto says Hungary will receive technology this year to produce Russia's Sputnik V jab, there are also plans for the nation to produce China's Sinopharm vaccine in a planned $193m plant.

• The EU says it will recognize the UK's NHS COVID-19 pass "soon." In some European countries such as the Netherlands, tourists from the UK must do COVID-19 tests because the NHS app proving full vaccination status is not recognized. However, three months after an application to the European Commission to join the EU-wide scheme, a spokesperson said: "The commission received the UK's application on July 28. Significant progress was made on the technical front with the aim of going live soon."

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