World Overview: Tokyo Olympics to open despite state of emergency, Asian countries face vaccine shortage

The Latest: IOC VP: Olympics held despite state of emergency TOKYO — The IOC vice president in charge of the Tokyo Olympics says the games will open in just over two months even if the city and other parts of Japan are under a state of emergency because of rising coronavirus cases. AP NEWS

TOKYO — The IOC vice president in charge of the Tokyo Olympics says the games will open in just over two months even if the city and other parts of Japan are under a state of emergency because of rising coronavirus cases.

John Coates spoke on a virtual hookup with Tokyo organizers after three days of meetings. The Olympics are set to open on July 23. Coates says the Olympics will go on even if local medical experts advise against it.

He says advice from the World Health Organization assured him that “all of those measures that we are undertaking are satisfactory and will ensure a safe and secure games in terms of health.” ...

TOKYO — Japan has expanded a coronavirus state of emergency after it approved the use of two more vaccines to help contain a surge in infections, nine weeks ahead of the scheduled opening of the Tokyo Olympics.

The government will add the Okinawa prefecture, home to most of the U.S. military forces stationed in Japan, to the state of emergency on Sunday. Although there’s no forced lockdown, the state of emergency allows prefectural governors to demand that shops and public establishments close or shorten their hours. ...

Japan also approved the production and use of Moderna and AstraZeneca vaccines. So far, just 4% of the population has been vaccinated using the Pfizer shots.

CAIRO — Egypt has received its first shipment of raw materials necessary to begin manufacturing China’s Sinovac coronavirus vaccine.

The shipment from Beijing landed at the Cairo airport on Friday carrying raw materials to produce 2 million doses of the vaccine, according to airport officials. The plane also carried 500,000 doses of the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine. ...

MADRID — Spain is lifting its restrictions on travelers from the United Kingdom beginning Monday, saying British tourists play a key role in the Spanish economy. ...

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies says Asia faces a COVID-19 vaccine supply crisis amid grim record daily death tolls.

It said in a statement Friday that Nepal and Bangladesh have run out of vaccines while a majority of countries in the region are struggling with shortages. It says hospitals in India, Nepal, Malaysia and the Philippines are full to the brim with COVID-19 patients. ...