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With the number of confirmed coronavirus infections around the world topping 13 million, including more than 570,000 deaths, the United States says it expects to start producing potential vaccine doses by the end of the summer, even as more and more governments are imposing, or re-imposing, strict quarantine and social distancing guidelines to blunt the spread of the disease.  The U.S.-based cable financial news channel CNBC reported Monday that a senior Trump administration official told reporters the manufacturing process is already underway even though they aren’t sure which vaccine – if any – will work.  The official is quoted as saying they are already buying equipment, securing manufacturing sites, and acquiring raw materials.CNBC says two companies involved in the development of a potential new vaccine, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson, are expected to begin late-stage human trials for potential vaccines by the end of the month.  Social distancing
A set of new social distancing measures that took effect Tuesday in Hong Kong includes mandatory face masks for people using public transportation, with violators subject to fines up to $645 ($5,000 in Hong Kong currency).  Restaurants are banned from offering indoor dining after 6 p.m., and gyms, movie theaters and karaoke bars are once again ordered to shut down, in response to a new order announced by Chief Executive Carrie Lam that limits group gatherings from 50 people to four.The new guidelines have forced the closure of Hong Kong Disneyland, which had just reopened last month.  The Asian financial hub reported 52 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on Monday, including 41 that were locally transmitted, prompting authorities to issue a warning of a potential large-scale outbreak.  The city has reported more than 1,500 total coronavirus cases since the start of the pandemic.Women hold signs outside housing commission apartments under lockdown in Melbourne, Australia, July 6, 2020.New spikes
Over in Australia, the southern state of Victoria recorded 270 new COVID-19 cases Tuesday, including two deaths, pushing the total number of cases nationwide to 10,251 and 110 deaths.  Victoria’s capital city, Melbourne, is in the first week of a six-week lockdown imposed due to an alarming spike of new COVID-19 cases. Residents have been ordered to stay home unless going to work, school, medical appointments or shopping for food. The neighboring state of New South Wales has imposed a strict new set of restrictions on bars in response to a cluster of 21 new COVID-19 cases traced to a popular bar in Sydney. The new restrictions limit group bookings to just 10 people and cap the number of patrons in large venues to 300.  Wearing face masks in supermarkets and stores in Britain will be mandatory starting next week, Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s office announced Monday. Face coverings are already required on buses and subways in London and other English cities. Other European countries, including Germany, Greece, Italy and Spain already require face coverings in stores. Visitors crowd the beach July 12, 2020, in Santa Monica, Calif., amid the coronavirus pandemic.Surge in multiple US states
In the United States, which posted well over 60,000 new infections on Monday, more than three dozen states are seeing a dramatic rise in new coronavirus cases on a daily basis, forcing many of them to reverse plans to reopen their economies after shutting them down during the initial phase of the outbreak. California Governor Gavin Newsom extended Monday the closure of bars, restaurants, gyms, churches, and amusement centers from 19 counties to the entire state. The neighboring northwestern state of Oregon has banned gatherings of more than 10 people and mandated face masks for all Oregonians.  Across the Pacific Ocean, Hawaii Governor David Ige announced Monday the state is postponing plans to relax its quarantine requirements for some tourists from the U.S. mainland. The popular tourist destination has subjected all visitors to a mandatory 14-day quarantine since the start of the outbreak. The government had planned to make an exception for anyone who tested negative for COVID-19 in the 72 hours leading up to their departure, beginning August 1.Gov. Ige delayed the revised rules until September 1 because of the dramatic uptick of new cases in many states, which he said has also caused serious delays in testing.    
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Kenyan doctors are continuing to treat scores of coronavirus patients, a day after paying final respects to the country’s first doctor to succumb to the virus. Health officials in protective clothing brought Dr. Doreen Adisa Lugaliki for burial Monday, in a service attended by a few relatives.  Chibanzi Mwachonda, deputy Secretary-General of the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union said 38-year-old Dr. Lugaliki’s death was so painful doctors labeled the day “Black Monday.” Lenny Lugaliki, Dr. Lugaliki’s brother, acknowledged she was a diabetic, but said her sudden death four days after being admitted to the hospital was a shock.  He said the family was looking ahead to bringing her home and caring for her so she could get on with her life. Nearly 200 people have died of the novel coronavirus in Kenya and more than 10,200 others have tested positive for the virus. 
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Mexico announced it’s considering an offer of $120 million in cash plus medical equipment from an unnamed entity to buy a luxury equipped presidential airplane. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has been trying sell off the plane of his predecessor, former President Enrique Pena Nieto, since taking office in late 2018 on a campaign pledge of fugal spending.  López Obrador has been flying commercial airlines, citing the presidential plane to be an extravagance, with its presidential suite. Experts say the 787 Boeing jet, which initially cost $200 million, will be hard to off load because it would be difficult to reconfigure into a regular passenger jet. In an effort to boost the value of the presidential plane, the government is separately conducting a raffle, with winners getting cash prizes. 
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More than 930 employees of private contractors running U.S. immigration detention centers have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, according to congressional testimony given by company executives on Monday. The heads of four companies — CoreCivic, The GEO Group, Management & Training Corp (MTC) and LaSalle Corrections — that detain immigrants on contract with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), reported the infections among employees in response to questions from lawmakers. ICE has reported 45 cases of COVID-19 among its direct staff at detention facilities. Most of the employees at the privately run centers, however, work for private contractors and are not included in ICE’s count. Lawmakers have raised concerns about the spread of the virus inside nearly 70 centers across the country. More than 3,000 immigrants in ICE custody have tested positive for COVID-19, although some have recovered or been released. Two detainees have died of the disease. On Monday, a 51-year-old Mexican man who had tested positive for coronavirus died in ICE detention, although the agency said the cause of death was still undetermined. The chair of the House Committee on Homeland Security, Kathleen Rice, a Democrat from New York, said there had been reports among employees of rationing of personal protective equipment, inadequate medical care and delayed testing. CoreCivic said about 554 of its nearly 14,000 employees had tested positive. GEO Group said 167 of its 3,700 employees had come back with positive tests, with 69 recovered and one hospitalized. LaSalle said it had 144 employees with positive COVID-19 tests, out of the company’s some 3,000 employees, and MTC said 73 of its 1,200 employees had tested positive. ICE did not comment on the figures or the allegations raised at the hearing. There are currently nearly 22,580 detainees in ICE custody, a dramatic drop from the more than 50,000 migrants detained on average daily during the 2019 fiscal year. Arrests on the U.S.-Mexico border have declined in recent months, and courts have ordered releases, citing coronavirus risks. 
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The head of Somalia’s military escaped unhurt and one civilian was killed on Monday when a suicide attacker drove a bomb-laden car into a convoy in the capital Mogadishu, according to a military spokesman and an ambulance service. The al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab group said it was behind the attack. General Yusuf Rage was driving in the convoy near the military hospital in Mogadishu’s Hodan district when the blast struck, Colonel Abdiqani Ali, the military spokesman said. A wreckage of a rickshaw and a car are seen at the scene of an explosion in Mogadishu, Somalia, July 13, 2020.”The commander’s guards opened fire on the suicide car bomb as it speedily tried to swerve into the convoy. The bomber was shot dead and his car bomb exploded. The commander and his guards escaped unhurt,” he said. Mogadishu’s Aamin Ambulance service said it had collected the body of one civilian. Al-Shabab’s military operations spokesman Abdiasis Abu Musab said in a statement: “We conducted a martyrdom operation in Mogadishu. The target was a military convoy escorting senior apostate commanders.” Since 2008, the Islamist militant group has been fighting to overthrow the central government and establish its rule based on its own harsh interpretation of Islam’s Sharia law. 
 
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On Red Carpet this week, a recap of the virtual BET awards, which included Zimbabwean artist Sha Sha winning the viewer’s choice award for best new international act and artists using their performances to highlight the Black Lives Matter movement. Director Ava DuVernay and Colin Kaepernick are partnering on a Netflix series exploring the former NFL star’s childhood and adolescence. And, how can you join the African Mobile Film Festival? We have the details. These stories and more on the show this week. 
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This week on Red Carpet, we bring you the story of Kenyan photographer Georgina Goodwin, who specializes in capturing humanitarian and social issues in Africa. For some music from Ghana, we hear from singer Rashid Mugeez from the duo R2Bees. And, how one Los Angeles designer has created vegan sneakers made from recycled materials. These stories on this week’s episode. 
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