Coronavirus cases in ASEAN nations near 30,000

By Sorwar Alam

ANKARA (AA) - Member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) reported new cases and deaths caused by the novel coronavirus. Here is a rundown of the latest developments on the global pandemic in the region.

Latest Coronavirus situation in ASEAN countries:

The global death toll from the coronavirus climbed to 165,200, while the number of cases surpassed 2.4 million, according to a running tally by the U.S.’ Johns Hopkins University. More than 625,200 people have recovered from COVID-19 disease worldwide.

However, the 10-member ASEAN countries reported around 30,000 cases so far, with the total number of fatalities standing at 1,144.

Indonesia, one of the worst-hit countries among the ASEAN member states, has reported 6,575 cases of coronavirus, with 582 deaths so far. The world’s largest Muslim country with 230 million population also decided that mosques will remain closed during the Muslim Holy month of Ramadan. As the COVID-19 epidemic in Indonesia shows no signs of easing, two of the country's highest courts -- the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court -- have switched to virtual trials to keep the judicial system running.

The number of coronavirus cases in Philippines rose to 6,259, as 172 more people were infected on Sunday. The country also reported 12 new deaths, raising the tally to 409, with 572 recoveries. The fatality rate in the country stands at 6.6%, which is slightly higher than the global average of 6.4%. Meanwhile, the Philippine National Police on Monday said three more police personnel contracted COVID-19, bringing the total number of infected cops to 71.

Malaysia reported one more fatality due to coronavirus, bringing the death toll to 89. The country has so far reported 5,389 confirmed cases and 3,197 recoveries. The country also prepares to launch large-scale COVID-19 tests among foreign workers as it has conducted a total of 103,892 tests so far.

With 1,426 new cases reported in Singapore, the total number of confirmed cases rose to 8,014. The city-state did not report any new deaths as total number of deaths stands at 11.

Thailand announced 32 more cases from the coronavirus, pushing the total number of confirmed cases up to 1,765. The death toll in the country stood at 47, with no deaths reported on Sunday.

In Myanmar, five deaths have been reported so far, while the total number of confirmed cases rose to 111. The country -- which has around 2,000-kilometer-long borders with China, has conducted 5,152 tests so far. Brunei reported only one death with 138 cases of confirmed COVID-19.

Other member states of the regional bloc -- Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam -- reported no fatalities and the confirmed cases in the countries remain low.