Coronavirus live news: Peru death toll more than doubles after review, WHO renames variants

Here’s a sobering, but important, feature by Guardian contributor V on the ways in which the pandemic has erased women’s rights and left them vulnerable to violence. She writes,

All over the world, patriarchy has taken full advantage of the virus to reclaim power – on the one hand, escalating the danger and violence to women, and on the other, stepping in as their supposed controller and protector.

And in more Australia-related Covid news, the country’s drug regulator is considering referring Covid vaccine misinformation posts to the federal police, after anti-vaccine campaigners targeted an MP who posted about getting the jab.

In response to a viral post of Labor backbencher Julian Hill receiving his vaccine, numerous users posted false material purportedly from the Therapeutic Goods Administration wrongly claiming Covid-19 vaccines have caused more than 200 deaths.

The figure they used was in fact the number of people who have died after receiving the vaccine, but apart from one case, none have been linked by the TGA to the vaccine.

The TGA told Guardian Australia the alleged posting of the death counter was “particularly concerning” and it would consider referring it to the federal police.

If you’re looking for something to listen to, the latest edition of Today in Focus is here! In it, our Tokyo correspondent Justin McCurry talks to Anushka Asthana about the widespread opposition to the Olympic Games in Japan and whether the movement to cancel them can overcome huge commercial interests.

Hello, and welcome to today’s coronavirus live news blog with me, Helen Livingstone.

Peru has revised its official Covid-19 death toll to 180,764, nearly triple the previous official figure of 69,342, following a government review that shows the severity of the outbreak in the country.

As new coronavirus variants continue to be discovered, the World Health Organisation has revealed new names, after the letters of the Greek alphabet, to simplify the discussion around the variants and avoid stigma.

And Australia’s drug regulator says it may refer anti-vaccination Facebook posts to federal police after anti-vaccine campaigners targeted an MP who posted about getting the jab.

Here’s a roundup of what’s been happening over the past 24 hours: