The Latest: France reaches 100,000 COVID-19-related deaths

In this March 23, 2020 file photo, a victim of the COVID-19 virus is evacuated from the Mulhouse civil hospital, eastern France. The picture is still grim in parts of Europe and Asia as variants of the virus fuel an increase in new cases and the worldwide death toll closes in on 3 million. (AP Photo/Jean-Francois Badias, File)

In this April 12, 2021, file photo, Freeson Wong, 31, takes a selfie as he receives a dose of the Moderna vaccine at a vaccination center in the Chinatown neighborhood of Los Angeles. The United States opened more distance between itself and much of the rest of the world on Thursday, April 15, nearing the 200 millionth vaccine administered in a months-long race to protect the population against COVID-19, even as other countries, rich and poor, struggle with stubbornly high infection rates and deaths. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

People queue to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, outside the Stockholmsmassan exhibition center turned mass vaccination center, in Stockholm, Sweden, Thursday April 8, 2021. (Fredrik Sandberg/TT News Agency via AP)

FILE— In this Feb. 9, 2021, file photo, Parsa Namaki, center, son of Health Minister Saeed Namaki, left, is injected with the Russian Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine in a staged event at Imam Khomeini hospital in Tehran, Iran, Iran. Iran has finalized a deal with Russia over purchasing 60 million doses Sputnik V Coronavirus vaccine, state-run IRNA news agency reported Thursday, April 15, 2021. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi, File)

Secretary of State Antony Blinken announces his appointment of Gayle Smith as the new State Department Coordinator for Global COVID-19 Response and Health Security as he speaks about U.S. leadership in fighting the coronavirus pandemic at the State Department in Washington, Monday, April 5, 2021. (Al Drago/Pool via AP)

Kenyans line up to receive a dose of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine manufactured by the Serum Institute of India and provided through the global COVAX initiative, at Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi, Tuesday, April 6, 2021. (AP Photo/Brian Ingasnga)

World Health organization Director for Europe Hans Kluge speaks to media during a press conference where he said he would take an AstraZeneca vaccine when his turn comes for inoculation, at a vaccination center in Bucharest, Romania, Wednesday, April 7, 2021. British authorities recommended Wednesday that the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine not be given to adults under 30 where possible because of strengthening evidence that the shot may be linked to rare blood clots, a recommendation that came as regulators both in the United Kingdom and the European Union emphasized that the benefits of receiving the vaccine continue to outweigh the risks for most people — even though the European Medicines Agency said it had found a "possible link" between the shot and the rare clots.(AP Photo/Andreea ALexandru)

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during a meeting via video conference at the Novo-Ogaryovo residence outside Moscow, Russia, Thursday, April 15, 2021. (Alexei Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

In this Dec. 20, 2020, file photo, people stand in lines to get COVID-19 tests in Samut Sakhon, south of Bangkok. Thailand’s lucky streak faded late last year, when a virus cluster was found among migrant workers working in factories and seafood markets and living in crowded dormitories. Severe restrictions and a massive testing campaign near the outbreak's epicenter seemed to contain it after several weeks. (AP Photo/Jerry Harmer, File)

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic poses with a vial of the Sputnik V in Belgrade, Serbia, Thursday, April 15, 2021. Serbia has announced it will begin packing and later producing Russia's Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine, which would make it the first European state outside Russia and Belarus to begin manufacturing the jab. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

Messages written by loved ones and dedicated to the deceased hang from a wall at a memorial for COVID-19 victims installed outside the Basilica of Guadalupe in Mexico City, Wednesday, April 14, 2021. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)

In this March 11, 2021 file photo, directed by a nurse, a COVID-19 patient, back center, stretches her arms as part of a fitness program in a field hospital built inside the Citibanamex convention center in Mexico City. Mexico’s unwillingness to spend money, do more testing, change course or react to new scientific evidence contributed to the country being one of the worst hit by the coronavirus pandemic, according to a report released the third week of April, by the University of California, San Francisco. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano, File)

The colors of the Brazilian Olympic team are projected on the statue of Christ the Redeemer by the Brazilian Olympic Committee as a reminder of how sport can inspire in the fight against COVID-19, one hundred days before the Tokyo Olympic Games, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Wednesday, April 14, 2021. (AP Photo/Lucas Dumphreys)

A man receives shot of Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine during mass vaccination in Jakarta, Indonesia. Thursday, April 15, 2021. (AP Photo/ Achmad Ibrahim)

A man receives shot of Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine during mass vaccination in Jakarta, Indonesia. Thursday, April 15, 2021. (AP Photo/ Achmad Ibrahim)

Vials of the Sputnik V vaccine placed on a table prior to the visit of Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic in Belgrade, Serbia, Thursday, April 15, 2021. Serbia has announced it will begin packing and later producing Russia's Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine, which would make it the first European state outside Russia and Belarus to begin manufacturing the jab. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

In this photo provided by the Serbian Presidential Press Service, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic receives a dose of the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine in the village of Rudna Glava, Serbia, Tuesday, April 6, 2021. Vucic finally rolled up his sleeve for a coronavirus vaccine Tuesday and to encourage his country's increasingly skeptical Serbs to get vaccinated themselves. (Serbian Presidential Press Service via AP)

In this March 12, 2021 photo provided by Unity Health Care, Othon Sosua, right, talks with a patient during a vaccination drive in Washington, D.C. Homeless Americans who have been left off priority lists for coronavirus vaccinations — or even bumped aside as states shifted eligibility to older age groups — are finally getting their shots as vaccine supplies increase. Walk-up vaccine events are crucial for a population with limited access to cars, cellphones or Wi-Fi, organizers say. (Unity Health Care via AP)

Gayle Smith, the new State Department Coordinator for Global COVID-19 Response and Health Security, speaks about U.S. leadership in fighting the coronavirus pandemic at the State Department in Washington, Monday, April 5, 2021, as Secretary of State Antony Blinken listens. (Al Drago/Pool via AP)

In this image released by World Press Photo, Thursday April 15, 2021, by Henrik Hansson, titled Faces of Bridge, part of a series which won second prize in the Sports Stories category, shows An 11-year-old boy plays a 92-year-old man, at the Borlange Bridge Club, Borlange, Sweden, on 28 June 2020. (Henrik Hansson, World Press Photo via AP)

People queue to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, outside the Stockholmsmassan exhibition center turned mass vaccination center, in Stockholm, Sweden, Thursday April 8, 2021. (Fredrik Sandberg/TT News Agency via AP)

People queue to receive a dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, outside the Stockholmsmassan exhibition center turned mass vaccination center, in Stockholm, Sweden, Thursday April 8, 2021. (Fredrik Sandberg/TT News Agency via AP)

PARIS — France has become the third country in Europe after the U.K. and Italy to reach the unwanted milestone of 100,000 COVID-19-related deaths as new infections and deaths surged due to virus variants.

The country of 67 million is the eighth nation in the world to reach the mark after a year of hospital tensions, on-and-off lockdowns and personal losses that have left families nationwide grieving the pandemic’s impact.

France added 300 new deaths Thursday to the previous day’s tally of 99,777, bringing the total to 100,077 deaths.

The moment prompted a message of solidarity from French President Emmanuel Macron. Lionel Petitpas, president of the association “Victims of COVID-19,” told the Associated Press that the number of 100,000 deaths is “an important threshold," adding: “It is a figure we thought would never be reached.”

___

THE VIRUS OUTBREAK:

— US opens more distance in vaccine race against coronavirus

— WHO: Europe surpasses 1 million COVID-19 deaths

— Africa CDC urges India to lift COVID vaccine export limits

— India skyrockets past 14M virus cases; 200,000 new infections in 1 day

___

Follow AP’s pandemic coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic and https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-vaccine

___

HERE’S WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING:

NEW YORK — New government data found that — as expected — some people who were fully vaccinated against the coronavirus are getting sick from new infections, but that it’s rare.

Health officials have said that no vaccine is perfect, and that infections were expected in some vaccinated people. But the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday for the first time reported how many such “breakthrough” infections have been occurring so far.

About 5,800 infections have been seen in about 40 states that have reported such data. Overall nationally, about 75 million have been fully vaccinated.

The numbers might seem to suggest that new infections are being detected in roughly one in every 13,000 people fully vaccinated. But CDC officials warned that the reporting of such cases has been uneven and incomplete, and there is no easy, accurate way to calculate a rate of how often such incidents occur.

Though many of the 5,800 people experienced symptoms, about 30% of the vaccinated people with the infections did not report any symptoms. However, 396 people were hospitalized. And 74 people died.

The agency has continued to recommend that fully vaccinated people take precautions in public places, like wearing a mask and avoiding crowds and poorly ventilated places.

___

NEW YORK — In the coronavirus vaccine race, the U.S. is opening more distance between itself and much of the rest of the world.

The U.S. has administered almost 200 million vaccine doses while other countries, rich and poor, struggle with the availability of vaccines. Parts of Europe, Latin America, Africa and Asia are experiencing virus variants fueling an increase in new cases as the worldwide death toll closes in on 3 million.

Nearly half of American adults have received at least one dose of the vaccine, and about 30% of adults in the U.S. have been fully vaccinated. The seven-day average of daily shots hit 2.9 million last week.

Still, daily infections in the U.S. have increased 11% in the past two weeks. Many states have lifted restrictions on businesses and public gatherings, even as more sick people get admitted to hospitals. Michigan leads with nearly 8,000 new infections per day.

France was expected to pass 100,000 virus deaths on Thursday, making it the eighth country to do so.

More than a third of the world’s deaths have occurred in three countries -- the United States (564,700), Brazil (361,800) and Mexico (173,000) where, combined, more than 1.1 million have perished.

___

LISBON, Portugal — Portugal’s restaurants, shopping malls, cinemas, high schools and universities will mostly reopen Monday as the country plans to gradually lift lockdown restrictions.

The government announced says it is mostly sticking with its strategy despite the number of coronavirus cases edging slowly higher. But a dozen council areas where cases remain high will keep limits in place.

Portugal’s pandemic metrics have ticked higher in recent weeks, after authorities last month began easing a lockdown introduced in mid-January. The incidence rate per 100,000 population over 14 days stands at 69, up from 62 on April 1. At the end of January, it was 1,628.

The number of hospitalized coronavirus patients has fallen to manageable levels. The country’s intensive care units had more than 900 patients in early February but now register 109.

The vaccination rate in Portugal is near is the European Union average, with 6.4% of the population fully inoculated. Portugal is using the AstraZeneca vaccine, and like many European countries, has faced vaccine supply shortages.

___

DETROIT — Michigan’s largest hospital system is turning to tents to handle the flow of people seeking emergency care as it deals with a crush of COVID-19 patients in suburban Detroit.

Beaumont Health says it had more than 800 patients treated for COVID-19 on Thursday, up from about 500 two weeks ago and just 128 at the end of February.

Dr. Nick Gilpin called it a “runaway train.” Beaumont officials says tents have been set up at some hospitals to evaluate people who show up for emergency care.

Statewide, the number of COVID-19 patients is near record highs. Four hospitals this week reported they were at total capacity.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer hasn’t ordered new restrictions to reduce the spread of the coronavirus, relying instead on vaccinations and expanded drug regimens. Whitmer is urging people to wear masks, keep a safe distance and follow rules on large gatherings.

___

TORONTO — Ontario reported a record 4,736 coronavirus infections on Thursday.

Ontario Health Minister Christine Elliott says the number includes 1,188 new cases in Toronto, the country’s largest city. There were 29 reported deaths.

There are 1,932 people hospitalized in Ontario with COVID-19, and 659 patients in intensive care and 419 on a ventilator.

Canada is dealing with a third wave of infections, likely fueled by variants, health officials say. Vaccinations have ramped up in Canada, but a delay in reapplying restrictions has led to a surge in Ontario.

The Ontario government says a field hospital in the parking lot of a Toronto hospital could be activated later this month as it grapples with rising hospitalizations caused by the virus.

___

TIRANA, Albania — Albania will receive a second batch of AstraZeneca vaccines this weekend.

Prime Minister Edi Rama says the country is expecting 90,800 AstraZeneca vaccines. The first batch of 38,000 arrived a month ago.

“There have been no problems with that, according to the immunization commission,” said Health Ministry spokeswoman Etiola Kola Nallbani. “Albania will continue vaccination with AZ.”

Albania has vaccinated some 300,000 people, starting with the medical personnel, elderly and schoolteachers. The goal is half a million people vaccinated ahead of the summer tourism season.

The new arrival will be available to the tourism industry staff of hotels and restaurants, according to Minister Ogerta Manastirliu.

The government has received about 400,000 doses so far out of 2.6 million contracted by Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Sinovac and Sputnik V. Albania has registered 128,959 coronavirus cases and 2,331 confirmed deaths.

___

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran has finalized a deal with Russia to purchase 60 million doses of Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine.

The state-run IRNA news agency reported Thursday that Iran’s ambassador to Russia, Kazem Jalali, says the contract for enough vaccines to inoculate 30 million people was “signed and finalized.” Jalali says Iran will receive the vaccines by the end of the year.

Iran began a 10-day lockdown Saturday amid a fourth wave of coronavirus infections. Authorities ordered most shops closed and offices restricted to one-third capacity in cities declared as “red zones,” with the highest infection rates. Over 85% of the country is either a red or orange zone.

Only some 200,000 doses have been administered in the country of 84 million, according to the World Health Organization. COVAX, an international collaboration to deliver the vaccine equitably across the world, delivered its first shipment to Iran on Monday from the Netherlands, containing 700,000 AstraZeneca doses.

Earlier this year, Iran started its vaccine program with a limited number of Russian Sputnik V vaccine doses going to medical workers.

___

NEW DELHI — India’s two largest cities have imposed stringent restrictions on movement and one planned to use hotels and banquet halls to treat coronavirus patients.

New Delhi announced stay-at-home orders for the weekend. The moves in the capital came after similar measures were imposed in the financial capital of Mumbai.

Those moves came as daily infections in the country shot past 200,000 Thursday amid a devastating surge that is straining a fragile health system. The soaring cases and deaths have forced India to delay exports of vaccines to other countries.

“The surge is alarming,” says S.K. Sarin, a government health expert in New Delhi.

Arvind Kejriwal, Delhi’s top elected official, says despite rise in infections, 5,000 hospital beds are still available in the capital and added capacity. Still, more than a dozen hotels and wedding banquet halls were ordered to convert into COVID-19 centers where doctors from nearby hospitals will treat the moderately ill.

___

GENEVA — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has kicked off an appeal to other countries to help inject $2 billion more to the U.N.-backed program to ship coronavirus vaccines to the world’s poorest countries.

The United States is co-hosting a pledging and donor conference Thursday, bringing together four presidents, three prime ministers and other dignitaries to help buttress the $6.3 billion already raised for the U.N.-backed COVAX program.

Blinken laid out a goal to raise COVAX’s target of vaccinating 20% of populations in the affected countries to 30%, with the addition of $2 billion in funds. The COVAX effort has been providing millions of vaccine doses to 92 of the world’s poorest countries.

“We recognize that as long as COVID is spreading and replicating anywhere, it poses a threat to people everywhere,” Blinken says.

Donors were expected to chip in either funds — prime minister Stefan Lofven announced Sweden was increasing its contribution to COVAX from $20 million to $280 million — or announce plans to share doses with the low- and middle-income countries.

Blinken highlighted the Biden administration’s contribution of $2 billion to COVAX in March and its plans to add another $2 billion through 2022.

___

DHAKA, Bangladesh — The death toll from coronavirus in Bangladesh crossed 10,000 on Thursday.

The country’s health facilities are struggling to cope with the increased demands for hospital beds for the critical patients. There were more than 4,000 confirmed cases and 94 deaths reported in the last day.

Officials say new strains of the virus were spreading quickly, prompting the government to enforce a nationwide lockdown. They say the number of daily cases has increased seven-fold in a month while the number of deaths has doubled in recent weeks.

Dr. A.S.M. Alamgir, principal scientific officer of the government’s Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research, told The Associated Press the deaths could worsen in coming weeks. Authorities say Bangladesh, a nation of more than 160 million people, has only 825 Intensive Care Unit beds for the critical patients in both government and private hospitals.

Total cases have increased to more than 707,000 and more than 10,000 confirmed deaths, according to the Ministry of Health Affairs.

___

BERLIN — The head of Germany’s disease control agency has warned that the situation in some of the country’s hospitals is “dramatic” in the need for treatment for COVID-19.

The Robert Koch Instiute reported 29,425 confirmed coronavirus cases in the past day and 293 deaths.

Lothar Wieler, who heads the Robert Koch Institute, says clinics in some cities and counties have already run out of intensive care beds. He says many of those requiring treatment are young adults.

Meanwhile, German set a record for COVID-19 vaccinations in a single day with nearly 740,000 on Wednesday, the Health Ministry says. The upswing began last week with the start of vaccinations in doctor's offices.

Germany has recorded nearly 3.1 million cases of the coronavirus and nearly 80,000 confirmed deaths.

___

GENEVA — A top official from the World Health Organization says Europe has surpassed 1 million deaths from COVID-19.

Dr. Hans Kluge says the situation remains “serious” with about 1.6 million new cases reported each week in the 53 countries that make up its European region.

Addressing recent concerns about vaccines, Kluge says the risk of people suffering blood clots is far higher for people with COVID-19 than people who receive AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine.

Kluge pointed to “early signs that transmission may be slowing across several countries” and cited “declining incidence” among the oldest people. He says the proportion of COVID-19 deaths among people over 80, who have been prioritized for vaccines, had dropped to nearly 30%.

Worldwide, a tally by Johns Hopkins University shows nearly 3 million deaths have been linked to COVID-19 — with the Americas hardest hit, followed by Europe. The United States, Brazil and Mexico have reported the highest number of deaths, collectively, at more than 1.1 million.

___

TOKYO — Japan’s western metropolis of Osaka reported a record 1,208 new coronavirus cases.

Tokyo reported a two-month high of 729 daily cases. A virus alert status began in Tokyo on Monday, allowing the authorities to issue binding orders for shorter hours at bars and restaurants.

Osaka and four other prefectures are also on alert, and the government is expected to add a few more areas for the elevated measures Friday.

The rapid resurgence in Japan comes less than three months before the Olympics. On Thursday, a top ruling party official suggested an option of canceling the Olympics if the infections make it impossible.

Officials are concerned that the sense of urgency is not shared by the people. Experts on a Tokyo metropolitan government taskforce warned that the new variant could replace the conventional coronavirus virus and trigger more infections by early May.

Dr. Shigeru Omi, head of a government taskforce, urged municipal leaders to take action quickly to curb the spread of the infections. Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike urged the residents to take maximum protection and asked non-Tokyo residents, except for essential workers, not to visit the area. She also asked the people to avoid traveling during the upcoming “Golden week” holidays beginning at the end of April.

Overall, Japan added 4,300 new cases Wednesday for a total of about half a million and 9,500 confirmed deaths.