Briefly

ITALY

16m people latest to enter virus lockdown

Swathes of Italy returned to coronavirus lockdown on Friday as the resurgent pandemic continued its march through Europe. Five virus "red zones" in Italy's north－plus Calabria in the country's "toe"－shuttered nonessential businesses, affecting 16 million people. Italy had been badly hit by a first wave, with images of swamped hospitals, makeshift morgues and intubated patients shocking the world. In Italy's financial and fashion capital Milan, streets have already fallen quiet."My customers are very scared, very scared," hairdresser Francesco Puccio said. Italy's regions followed 56 million people in England who went into a second lockdown on Thursday. Tourist destinations such as London's Buckingham Palace and Trafalgar Square were deserted, and normally bustling cities including Manchester and Liverpool fell quiet.

FRANCE

Govt firms up borders after terror attacks

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday that the country is reinforcing its border controls after a series of terrorist attacks that hit the country in recent weeks. Macron said the number of police and troops in charge of border controls will double from 2,400 now to 4,800. They will focus on fighting illegal immigration and smuggling activities, he said during a visit to a frontier post in Le Perthus, on the border with Spain. In addition, Macron said he will push for changes to make controls at the European Union's external borders more efficient. Herve Cazaux, border police director in Le Perthus region, said police had arrested 11,200 people seeking to cross the French-Spanish border illegally so far this year, compared with 5,500 last year.

DENMARK

Fur farmers lament move to cull minks

Danish fur farmers say they have been dealt a major blow after the world's largest mink fur exporter decided to cull all 15 million minks in Denmark's farms, to minimize the risk of them retransmitting the coronavirus to humans. The government's decision also raised eyebrows among health experts."I do not think there is a mink profession in the future," breeder Frank Andersen told Danish broadcaster DR on Thursday."I hope that they have evidence behind (their claim) and that it is the right decision," said Andersen, who has run a mink farm with his father for the past 15 years near Hjoerring in northern Denmark, and has about 15,000 animals. The government said on Wednesday that a mutation in COVID-19 has been found in 12 people who got infected by minks in the northern part of the country. It has promised to compensate farmers.

NEW ZEALAND

Legalized marijuana bid stubbed out

New Zealand won't be legalizing marijuana after the final votes counted on Friday in a referendum failed to overturn the result from election night last month－although it got close. The referendum to legalize the drug ended up with 48 percent in support and 51 percent opposed, a tightening from the election night split of 46 percent in favor and 53 percent against. The special votes tallied after the Oct 17 election included those cast overseas and accounted for about 17 percent of the total vote. The special votes also slightly increased the majority of liberal Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and her Labour Party, which ended up with just more than half of the total vote, and 65 of the Parliament's 120 seats.

Agencies - Xinhua