Moon to preside over Covid response meeting amid surge

Seoul, Nov 26 (IANS) South Korean President Moon Jae-in will preside over a Covid-19 response meeting next week as the country is battling an ongoing surge in serious cases after easing some social distancing rules, his office said on Friday.

Moon will hold the meeting on November 29 during which he will discuss a swift implementation of booster shots and other containment measures with relevant ministers, Yonhap News Agency quoted the office as saying.

South Korea has seen a sharp jump in daily coronavirus infections after the government started its first phase of the "living with Covid-19" scheme this month for people's gradual return to normal life.

The nation's daily virus cases stayed below 4,000 for the second straight day on Friday, but critical cases rose to a record high.

Critically ill patients hit an all-time high of 617 on Friday, up five from the previous high on Thursday, amid growing concerns about a shortage of hospital beds.

Earlier this week, Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said the country's virus situation is worse than expected, especially in the capital area, urging health authorities to beef up containment measures.

Kim said the Seoul metropolitan area, home to half of the country's population, is in an urgent situation and needs to consider imposing an emergency Covid-19 response plan based on health authorities' virus risk assessment.