Asia moves cautiously to combat virus

TOKYO－Tokyo 2020 officials are looking at ways to scale back the postponed Olympic Games, the city's governor said on Thursday, amid reports the opening ceremony could be streamlined and spectator numbers cut.

Aside from the reduction in the number of spectators, the changes could include a shortened format for the opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympics and Paralympics, Kyodo News reported.

The provision of medical services and restrictions on outings from the athletes village are also being floated as possible measures against the virus.

However, Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga on Thursday stopped short of clarifying whether the government is moving away from a pledge to hold the Games in their original form.

"It is extremely important to host a secure and safe Games for athletes and spectators," the top government spokesman said.

Separately, Japan's Justice Ministry on Thursday decided to ease a ban on re-entry by foreign nationals in situations requiring humanitarian consideration.

Under the new plan, foreign residents whose overseas relatives have died or are in critical condition, or who require follow-up examinations after surgery abroad, will be allowed to re-enter Japan.

In South Korea, new virus cases in greater Seoul continued to rise on Thursday amid a steady increase linked to religious gatherings, putting health authorities on high alert over further spread in the densely populated metropolitan area amid concerns over asymptomatic "silent" virus spreaders.

The country added 39 more cases on Thursday, raising the total number of infections to 11,629.

Elsewhere in Asia, Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Thursday ordered authorities to double the number of COVID-19 tests being done and aggressively trace infected people as the country gears up to more normal conditions.

Authorities in the provinces of East Java, South Sulawesi and South Kalimantan, where infection rates have yet to ease, must put in extra efforts to curb coronavirus transmission, Widodo said.

The country plans to resume economic activities in those areas where infections have been controlled as part of the implementation of what officials call "a new normal scenario".

As of Wednesday, the virus had killed 1,698 people across Indonesia and infected 28,233 others.

In India, the health ministry said it was ramping up testing across the country, where 4 million tests have been performed. Daily capacity is approaching 140,000 tests.

COVID-19 deaths in India on Thursday crossed 6,000, with another record single-day spike in cases, taking the total to 216,919.

In the Middle East, Israel's parliament suspended sessions scheduled for Thursday and asked nonessential staff to stay home after a lawmaker, Sami Abou Shahadeh, tested positive for the virus.

Israeli media reported on Thursday that as many as 42 schools had closed over fresh outbreaks. The country had reported 17,343 cases and 290 deaths.

In Turkey, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said on Wednesday his team would not recommend extending a weekend stay-at-home order as the government continues to ease containment measures.

The virus has killed 4,609 people in Turkey, with more than 165,000 infections so far.

Wang Xu in Tokyo, Liu Xuan in Beijing, Xinhua and agencies contributed to this story.