South Africa deaths pass 5,000 South Africa’s death toll from coronavirus has passed the 5,000 mark, according to official figures released on Sunday by the continent’s hardest hit country, AFP reports. South Africa registered 85 new deaths from the virus in the previous 24 hours, bringing the death toll to 5,033. A total of 13,449 new infections were also officially diagnosed, taking the number to 364,328, figures released by the health ministry showed. Minister of Health Zweli Mkhiz urged citizens to respect recommended hygiene measures. “As government, we have mobilised every resource.... But government cannot manage this unilaterally,” he said in a statement. “We are extremely concerned that fatigue seems to have set in and South Africans are letting down their guard at a time when the spread of infection is surging. “We see poor or no social distancing in communities. Masks are abandoned or not worn properly,” he said. “This will directly influence the rise in numbers in the next two weeks. Our ability to break the cycle of infections depends on our willingness to remain focused and disciplined and take non pharmaceutical interventions seriously,” the minister said. The peak of the pandemic in South Africa is expected over the next few weeks. Authorities imposed a strict lockdown in late March, but the measures have been progressively eased to avoid economic collapse. Hong Kong makes masks mandatory indoors As Hong Kong confirmed a record 108 new cases, on Sunday, 83 of which are locally transmitted, leader Carrie Lam introduced a series of new restrictions, including the mandatory wearing masks while indoors in public spaces. Lam also ordered civil servants to work from home starting today, and advised schools to give students their university entrance exam results online, the South China Morning Post reports. On restaurants: The 6pm to 5am ban on dine-in services at restaurants and the rule limiting tables to only four people would be extended for a week to July 28. The closure of bars and 12 other types of premises, including gyms and karaoke lounges, would also be extended to the same date. Lam said the government had also considered banning dine-in services during breakfast and lunch, but decided against it because many people needed to eat out. Hong Kong was held up months ago as a model for its success in keeping down Covid-19 cases in the crowded city-state of 7.5 million people, but its caseload – although still low by European and American standards – had grown by a third in the past fortnight to nearly 1,800. Trump says Fauci "alarmist" In an extraordinary interview with Fox News on Sunday, US President Donald Trump called White House expert Dr Anthony Fauci “an alarmist” and when asked about the country’s daily coronavirus death toll of around 1,000, said: “It is what it is.” The interview – during which Trump also had an argument about whether identifying an elephant was strong evidence of mental stability – was especially combative when it touched on Covid-19, which has infected 3.7 million and killed more than 140,000 people in the US. Fox News anchor Chris Wallace repeatedly pressed Trump about the death toll, which the president attempted to deflect by pointing to mortality rates in other countries and saying the US had “one of the lowest in the world”. “That’s not true, sir,” Wallace said, correctly. The argument continued, and Trump asked his press secretary, Kayleigh McEnany, to “please bring me the mortality rate”. “You have the numbers, please?” Trump asked. “Because I hear we have the best mortality rate. Number, number one low mortality rate.” Waving a paper, Trump said: “I hope you show this on air, because it shows what fake news is about.” “I don’t think I’m fake news,” Wallace said. Wallace then showed a montage of Trump’s comments minimizing Covid-19, by saying it will “disappear” at some point. “I’ll be right eventually,” Trump said. “It is going to disappear. I’ll say it again, it’s going to disappear and I’ll be right.” Wallace asked if Trump’s past comments about coronavirus disappearing, which have not been borne out, discredited him. “I don’t think so, you know why? Because I’ve been right probably more than anybody else.” Trump went on to say masks can cause problems (they do not) and to say an increase in testing is why the US has such a high number of cases. It is not. Summary Hello and welcome to today’s live coronavirus pandemic coverage. My name is Helen Sullivan and I’ll be bringing you the latest news from around the world for the next few hours. As always, it would be great to hear from you – send tips, questions, suggestions and briefcases full of unmarked bills to me on Twitter @helenrsullivan or via email: helen.sullivan@theguardian.com. US President Donald Trump has called the top US infectious diseases expert, Dr Anthony Fauci, “an alarmist” in a Fox news interview. The coronavirus situation in Hong Kong is “really critical”, with a record 100 new infections recorded on Sunday, the territory’s leader, Carrie Lam, said. Hong Kong’s case load has grown by a third in the past fortnight to nearly 1,800. Lam has shuttered bars, gyms and nightclubs in the past week and on Sunday announced new guidelines including mandatory mask-wearing indoors. “I think the situation is really critical and there is no sign the situation is being brought under control,” she told reporters. Here are the key developments from the last few hours: A record 100 new cases were confirmed in Hong Kong, the territory’s leader said on Sunday, as she tightened social distancing measures to tackle the sudden rise in number of infections. While the city has had initially impressive success in tackling the disease, all but ending local transmissions by late June, infections have spiked in the last two weeks once more and doctors fear the new outbreak is now spreading undetected in the densely packed territory of 7.5 million people. The United Nations has made an urgent appeal for $283m to help Sudan tackle the coronavirus pandemic and its economic consequences, as millions in the country face hunger. An official said the pandemic had worsened an economic crisis, hitting purchasing power, while movement restrictions had restricted people’s access to food, healthcare and basic services. France to issue €135 fines to people flouting new mask rules. The French government has announced that it will issue a €135-euro (£122) fine to people who flout its decree to wear a mask in indoor public spaces.Amid signs of an uptick in virus circulation, prime minister, Jean Castex, on Thursday said masks will become compulsory in enclosed public spaces from Monday in a bid to prevent a second wave of coronavirus infections. Donald Trump is seeking to block billions of dollars in funding for coronavirus testing and contact tracing efforts as cases spike across the US, where around 70,000 people are testing positive each day. White House opposition to spending proposed by Senate Republicans has sparked frustrations in his own party, according to the Washington Post, the New York Times and other media outlets. NFL stars attack NFL for having ‘no clear plan’ over Covid-19. Some of the NFL’s biggest names took to social media on Sunday to express their concerns and anger over the lack of Covid-19 safety protocols as teams prepare to open training camps this week.Super Bowl winning quarterbacks Drew Brees, Patrick Mahomes and Russell Wilson along with Houston Texans defensive end JJ Watt were among those expressing their frustration at the NFL ignoring advice from its own medical experts. The UK prime minister, Boris Johnson, has insisted he can avoid imposing another England-wide lockdown this winter, describing it as a “nuclear deterrent” that he hopes never to use. Despite chief scientific adviser Patrick Vallance saying “national measures” might be necessary if there were fresh waves of the virus in the coming months, the prime minister said he “certainly” did not want to have to order the public to “stay at home” again. Authorities in Australia are stepping up their battle against coronavirus with the second biggest city of Melbourne announcing the introduction of mandatory face coverings from Wednesday when leaving the house. The premier of the Australian state of Victoria said people in Melbourne, and the adjacent shire of Mitchell to its north, would have to wear a mask or a face covering from 11.59pm on Wednesday.