The World Health Organization says the Delta variant, first detected in India, has been identified in at least 90 countries and is spreading rapidly among those unvaccinated.

Restaurants, cafes and bars are closed in Sydney, just one of four Australian cities now under a two-week lock down. To date, just four percent of Australia’s population has been vaccinated after a slow vaccine roll-out. The government on Monday announced mandatory vaccinations for those working in facilities for the elderly and quarantine hotels.

Europe is bracing for a surge in the Delta variant. Germany says its cases have already doubled in the last week. The government is banning travel to and from Portugal and Russia. And Israel, which is one of the most highly vaccinated countries, re-imposed indoor mask requirements after infections more than quadrupled last week. The rise in cases is attributed to two school outbreaks.

Joining the discussion:

• Kate Tulenko is the CEO and founder of Corvus Health.
• Paul Goepfert is a professor of Medicine and Microbiology and the Director of the Alabama Vaccine Research Clinic.
• Peter Chin-Hong is an infectious disease specialist at the University of California, San Francisco.
• Chris Smith is a consultant clinical virologist at the University of Cambridge.

For more:

As the COVID-19 Delta variant surges through Indonesia, hospitals are nearly overwhelmed. This hospital in Jakarta has its corridors full of patients waiting for bed space. Take a walk down the hall and listen as a nurse describes the the situation. pic.twitter.com/EY7dKoiHEj

— CGTN America (@cgtnamerica) June 29, 2021

Central Sydney's streets are deserted as Australia's largest city begins a week-long lockdown to contain the highly contagious Delta coronavirus variant, with authorities warning broader restrictions could follow https://t.co/gPECdcLIje pic.twitter.com/LrtuW79oYq

— AFP News Agency (@AFP) June 26, 2021