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• Ukraine registered a record 2,328 cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours , officials said on Saturday, breaking the previous record of 2,134 set on Thursday. Total cases are at 102,971, with 2,244 COVID-19 deaths.

**• Czechia recorded its highest one-day rise with 506 new cases **on Friday. The country's case total is now 21,551, with 411 deaths including 19 over the past week.

• Madrid authorities advised residents in areas with a high level of cases to stay at home after the country recorded more than 3,000 new infections for the fourth day running.

• Swedish prime minister Stefan Lofven insisted his country has followed the right strategy in avoiding a strict lockdown. "What has been discussed most, and what we did differently in Sweden, was that we did not close schools," he told the

Dagens Nyheter

newspaper. "Now there are quite a few people who think we were right."

• **The UK government said that travelers from France must self-certify **that they are neither suffering coronavirus symptoms nor have been in contact with a confirmed case within 14 days preceding travel.

• Germany has added Brussels to its high-risk destination list , warning citizens against non-essential travel there; Antwerp was already on the list. Anyone entering Germany from listed areas faces compulsory virus test or two week's quarantine.

• Ireland will maintain strict COVID-19 restrictions for another two weeks in Kildare, one of three counties where they were reimposed earlier this month, the others being Laois and Offaly.

**• The UK's R-rate has risen and may now be above 1, **said the Government Office for Science, suggesting the epidemic is growing. The UK's number is between 0.9 and 1.1, the government said, up from 0.8-1.0 last week.

• World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus hopes the coronavirus pandemic will be shorter than the 1918 Spanish flu and last less than two years , if the world unites and succeeds in finding a vaccine.

• Germany's caseload rose by 2,034 to 232,082, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) announced on Saturday, with the death toll rising by seven to 9,267.

• Russia reported 4,921 new cases on Saturday, pushing its confirmed national tally up to 951,897, with 121 more deaths raising that toll to 16,310.

• France registered 4,586 new cases on Friday, slightly down on its post-lockdown record of 4,771 the previous day, for a total of 234,400. Deaths rose by 23 to 30,503.

An employee at Barcelona's La Pepita restaurant serves customers sharing a table with inflatable dolls, designed to help impose social distancing rules. /Josep Lago/AFP

ACROSS EUROPE

Stefan de Vries in Amsterdam

Protesters against coronavirus restrictions wounded a police officer and assaulted an MP outside parliament in The Hague. The MP also received death threats. The President of the Lower House has pressed charges against the protesters, while prime minister Mark Rutte called the attackers "nasty and uneducated."

A new type of COVID-19 test is being developed for children aged up to six years. Rather than a cotton swab in their throat and nose, small children will take a saliva test through a sponge in their mouth. The test could be available in a couple of weeks.

On Friday, 535 people in the Netherlands tested positive for COVID-19, or 3,1 per 100,000 inhabitants, similar to the day before.

Germany

Germany on Friday warned against travel to Brussels because of the high rate of coronavirus infections in the Belgian capital. The foreign ministry cautions against non-essential travel to EU regions where there have been more than 50 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 inhabitants over the past week.

"There is currently a warning in place for non-essential, tourist travel to the capital Brussels and the province of Antwerp," the ministry said on its travel advice website. The ministry also issued a warning against travel to French Guyana.

The warnings are not just words on a webpage: they carry an implied threat if ignored. Those returning from listed areas face a compulsory virus test and two weeks' quarantine if they refuse.

Spain

Authorities in Madrid have advised residents in areas with a high level of coronavirus cases to stay at home as the Spanish health ministry reported more than 3,000 new infections for the fourth day running. The country logged 3,650 coronavirus infections in the past 24 hours, bringing the cumulative total to 386,054.

With 1,199 infections, Madrid accounted for nearly a third of the new cases. The region's deputy health chief Antonio Zapatero urged people to avoid unnecessary trips and meetings, and said those in the worst-hit areas should stay at home, though he ruled out any mandatory confinement for now. "Although we're worried, I don't think the situation merits targeted lockdowns," he told reporters.

Ireland

Ireland is to maintain restrictions for another two weeks in Kildare, one of three counties where they were reimposed earlier this month. Businesses were closed or limited from 7 August in three of its 26 counties, Kildare, Laois and Offaly; nationwide restrictions were tightened this week as Ireland's infections grew at the third-highest rate in Europe.

"The spread of the virus is being suppressed [in the three counties], we all owe them a debt of gratitude," said health minister Stephen Donnelly. "The number of new cases in Kildare have stabilized and are falling but are nonetheless still high."

The clusters in Kildare primarily started in food processing plants and accommodation for asylum seekers, many of whom work in the factories. The restrictions mean residents can only leave their county in very limited circumstances.

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