TOKYO — Tokyo reported over 1,000 new coronavirus infections on Thursday, a new record, as local and government officials warned that a state of emergency might be needed to tackle spiking cases. Japan’s Jiji news agency reported that Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga had called emergency talks with ministers on the virus situation later Thursday. It has been reported to me that it will be above 1,000 and reach somewhere around 1,300,” Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike told reporters. In this winter season, we are seeing the coronavirus spread and it is an extremely serious situation,” she warned. If cases continue to rise, the city “may have no choice but to request” the central government implement a new state of emergency, Koike warned on Wednesday.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer December 31, 2020 08:37 UTC