Spanish students announce strike over back-to-school conditions

The Spanish student union said Wednesday that it will call a strike over the conditions for September's return to school.

In a Twitter post, the Sindicato de Estudiantes demanded smaller classes and for more teachers to be hired. The students are scheduled to strike on September 16, 17 and 18.

The Spanish education ministry has yet to issue its final recommendations for the start of classes. The education minister, Isabel Celaá, will meet representatives from the regional governments on Thursday to agree the final safety measures and procedures to be put in place. 

In an interview with a Spanish radio on Wednesday, Celaá suggested that children from 6 years of age will have to wear masks while at school, that a "bubble system" will be put in place and that classes will have to be ventilated and disinfected regularly. 

A worker at a Covid-19 testing station at Cologne Bonn Airport in Germany on August 8. Sascha Schuermann/Getty Images

European authorities are battling against further waves of the coronavirus pandemic. These are the latest developments from the continent:

Germany: More than 40% of people who recently tested positive for coronavirus in Germany were very likely infected abroad, data from the country's infectious disease agency, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), indicated Tuesday night.

According to the latest figures, the proportion of new cases with links to international travel has risen dramatically since borders began to reopen and now sits at 42%. At the same time, the RKI pointed out the limited validity of the data given that people who have been abroad will be tested more frequently than the rest of the population.

On Wednesday, Germany reported 1,576 new cases of Covid-19 infections according to the RKI, bringing the total tally to 236,429 cases and 9,280 deaths. 

As numbers in Germany continue to rise, the city of Munich warned it will limit alcohol sales if coronavirus cases reach a certain threshold, authorities announced Tuesday night.

France: French health authorities reported a "strong rise" in virus transmission on Tuesday, adding that the situation in the country "remains worrying."

A further 3,304 new cases were reported on Tuesday. By comparison, last Tuesday saw a rise of 2,238 cases, while the Tuesday before saw 1,397 new cases reported.

Face masks will be mandatory in the southern French city of Marseille, and bars and restaurants must close at 11 p.m. local time in the wider Bouches-du-Rhône region, local authorities announced Tuesday.

These measures, which will come into effect on Wednesday night, were decided following a sharp regional acceleration of coronavirus cases, with an incidence rate of 177 per 100,000 in compared to about 33 per 100,000 at the end of July, according to figures given by the regional prefecture Tuesday.

Spain: Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced new measures on Tuesday to stop the spread of Covid-19, as he admitted "the situation is worrying". 

Spain will deploy 2,000 military personnel to aid with contact tracing in Spanish regions where it is needed. Sánchez also called on the different regional governments to use the Radar contact tracing app as "if just 20% of people download the application, we can bring down thee contagion levels by 30%." Only seven of the 17 Spanish regions are now using the app.

Meanwhile, the President of the Madrid region, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, announced the circumstances under which the education centers will open in the capital. 

Díaz Ayuso said on Tuesday masks will be mandatory for children aged six and above at all times while in education centers. Catalonia's President, Quim Torra, announced similar measures on Monday, saying children in Catalonia will have to wear masks at school from 12 years of age, and from the age of six in territories with "higher risk of contagion."

In Spain, where regional governments retain responsibility and decision power on education and health, each of the regions will have to decide on measures for schools and other educational centers to reopen. 

People visit a beach in Porto Cervo, Italy, on August 18. Emanuele Perrone/Getty Images

Italy: Italy has seen a steady increase in coronavirus cases in the past week, according to the country's health ministry. Authorities said approximately 50% of new infections have been contracted during summer vacations, around the country and abroad, primarily among young adults who have not been cautious with social distancing and mask-wearing guidelines.

Italy registered 519 new cases in the past day, bringing the total number of active cases to 19,714, according to Italian Ministry of Health data released Tuesday. Four people have died in the past 24 hours, bringing Italy's death toll to 35,445, according to the ministry. 

United Kingdom: The UK Education Secretary Gavin Williamson has said secondary school children in local lockdown regions in England will now be required to wear face masks, after the government revised its previous guidance.

In other areas of England -- not covered by local lockdown restrictions -- it will be at the headteacher’s discretion whether face masks should be worn.

The Scottish government has already announced that students over the age of 12 should wear masks in communal areas and while moving around schools. The Welsh government is considering its advice to students.

Ukraine: Yulia Tymoshenko, Ukraine's former Prime Minister, remains in serious condition, two days after contracting Covid-19, according to her party’s regional spokesperson. Speaking to CNN on Tuesday, Natalia Kovalenko said several members of Tymoshenko’s close family are also ill with the virus. 

Pope Francis waves from the window of the Apostolic Palace overlooking St. Peter's Square on August 15 at the Vatican. Tiziana Fabi/AFP/Getty Images

Pope Francis will resume his regular Wednesday public appearances next week (from September 2), the Vatican has announced -- the first since coronavirus lockdown started there in March.

The audiences will not be held at St Peter’s Square, but rather in the San Damaso courtyard inside the Apostolic Palace.

It is unclear how many people will be allowed to attend the audience.

Authorities in Berlin have banned this weekend’s planned protests against the German government’s coronavirus restrictions, citing concerns about violations of hygiene regulations.

In a statement, Berlin's Senate announced: “Today, the assembly authority banned several demonstrations that were to take place next weekend in Berlin,” adding that “the expected circle of participants will be in violation of the current infection protection ordinance.”

The Senate said that protests on August 1 had shown “that the participants had deliberately ignored existing hygiene rules and corresponding requirements.”

Andreas Geisel, a senior official in the state of Berlin said: “This is not a decision against freedom of assembly, but a decision for infection protection. We are still in the middle of a pandemic with increasing numbers of infections. This cannot be denied. We must therefore weigh up the fundamental right to freedom of assembly against the right to the integrity of life. We have chosen life.”

Organizers of the protest had planned to march through the center of the German capital on Saturday. Police told CNN as many as 17,000 participants were expected to march, with thousands more expected at a rally afterwards.

“I am not prepared to accept a second time that Berlin is misused as a stage for Corona [virus] deniers ... and right-wing extremists,” Geisel went on to say, adding that: “The state will not be fooled.”

Here's some background: Thousands of protesters rallied in Berlin on August 1 to demonstrate against measures imposed in Germany to stem the coronavirus pandemic. Police broke up the demonstration, which was attended by some 20,000 people, on the basis that organizers failed to ensure health and safety regulations were followed. Most protesters did not wear face masks or adhere to physical distancing rules, police said. 

German chancellor Angela Merkel is set to meet with the country’s 16 state premiers on Thursday to discuss the country's coronavirus response amid rising numbers of infections.

Overall crime levels in England and Wales fell during the coronavirus lockdown, driven by a significant reduction in burglary and theft offences, according to new figures from the UK’s Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Crime levels were 25% lower in April and 20% lower in May than their respective months in 2019, the ONS said.

Theft offences were about half what they were for the same time last year, it added.

By contrast, there was a jump in drug offences during these two months, compared with the same time last year. The ONS said this was because of “proactive police activity in pursuing these crimes during lockdown.”

The UK’s National Police Chiefs Council has previously reported an increase in domestic abuse incidents during the lockdown. However, the ONS says this was not included in the latest report because some police forces only return such data on a quarterly basis.

The Czech government has announced new rules on face masks starting September 1, to coincide with the day Czech schools are set to reopen for the new academic year.

In the announcement on Monday, the country’s health ministry said the new rules -- which make face masks mandatory in health and social care facilities, public transport, public offices, such as town halls, and polling stations -- are directly related to the reopening of the schools.

The Czech Republic was one of the first in the world to make face masks compulsory when the pandemic started earlier this year. 

As the virus got under control, it started relaxing the rules and allowing people to go without face coverings in more places. However, the start of the new school year makes the return of face masks a prudent decision, the government said.

Authorities said it was desirable to reduce the number of these common infections during the coronavirus pandemic because of the danger of possible co-morbidities, co-infections and super-infections. The government added that face covering will work as a double protection against both the common respiratory infections and the novel coronavirus.

Face masks will now also be mandatory for all indoor events attended by over 100 people.

Those exempt from the new rules include children under two years old, people with intellectual or cognitive disabilities, some public transport workers, and members of wedding parties during ceremonies.

Masks will not be mandatory in schools. The government was originally planning to make face masks compulsory in some school facilities, however, after consultations with the educational sector and teachers’ associations, it decided it will only impose mandatory face masks in schools if the epidemiological situation deteriorates. Opposition parties criticized the U-turn as chaotic.

Arizona State University (ASU) has sued Facebook in a US federal court over the company’s lack of cooperation in providing details and taking down an Instagram account that was advertising “Covid parties” and spreading misinformation about the school’s response to the disease, court records show.

Instagram is owned by Facebook.

The backstory: In July, ASU became aware of an Instagram account that promoted Covid-19 parties, the school said in a statement. The account urged followers to avoid social distancing, and not to wear face coverings for the upcoming fall semester.

What ASU did: Lawyers for the school reached out to Instagram in early August in an effort to take the account down, arguing that it was using the university’s logo and trademarks without permission, court records show.

However, Instagram told the school that “it is not clear that the content you’ve reported infringes your trademark rights,” according to an email exchange in the suit. An Instagram employee told ASU’s attorney that it did not appear that the content was likely to confuse people about the source, sponsorship or affiliation.

Russia connection: In addition to the misinformation, the school’s initial investigation indicated that the people behind the account could be in Russia, according to the lawsuit. The university felt that someone was using the account to "sow confusion and conflict and to interfere with the health of the Arizona State University community by trying to worsen the pandemic here.”

The school filed a lawsuit, alleging trademark infringement, on August 20. 

When asked about the lawsuit, a Facebook company spokesperson said that they "have removed the account in question for violating our policies.” Facebook disagreed that the account infringed on any ASU trademark rights, and would not comment on the account’s origin, citing user privacy reasons.

Despite the account going down, ASU said that it would press on with the litigation.

Travelers arriving from abroad wait to be tested at a Covid-19 testing station set up at Cologne-Bonn Airport in Germany, on August 8. Sascha Schuermann/Getty Images

More than 40% of people who recently tested positive for coronavirus in Germany were likely infected abroad, data from the country's infectious disease agency, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), indicated Tuesday night.

According to the latest figures, the proportion of new cases with links to international travel has risen dramatically since borders began to reopen and now sits at 42%. 

Many of the cases have been linked to Kosovo, Croatia, Turkey, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Bulgaria, according to the RKI.

But RKI also pointed out that people who have been abroad will be tested more frequently than the rest of the population.

What's happening in Germany: On Wednesday, Germany reported 1,576 new Covid-19 infections, according to the RKI, bringing the total tally to 236,429 cases and 9,280 deaths. 

Munich's mayor Dieter Reiter said that if the number of confirmed infections per 100,000 residents rises above 35 over a seven-day period, authorities will prohibit the sale of alcohol after 9 p.m. -- and after 11 p.m., alcohol consumption in public will be banned.

Britain's Secretary of State for Education Gavin Williamson poses for a photo in his office at the Department of Education in London on August 17. Stefan Rousseau/PA/AP

The United Kingdom’s Education Secretary Gavin Williamson says secondary school children in regions of England that are under local lockdowns will now be required to wear face masks.

The move is a U-turn on the government's previous guidance.

In other areas of England -- which are not covered by local lockdown restrictions -- it will be at the headteacher’s discretion whether face masks should be worn.

The government has been under pressure to change its advice on face masks in schools after the opposition Labour Party and some headteachers spoke out in favor of their use. As recently as Tuesday, government figures were insisting there was no reason to introduce face mask rules for schools.

The Scottish government has already announced that students over the age of 12 should wear masks in communal areas and while moving around schools.

The Welsh government is considering its advice to students.