U. k. unvEils THREE- lEvEl lockdown plan

LONDON » The British government carved England into three tiers of coronavirus risk on Monday in a bid to slow a resurgent outbreak, putting the northern city of Liverpool into the highest- risk category and shutting its pubs, gyms and betting shops.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the three- level national system was designed to “simplify and standardize” a confusing patchwork of local rules, as the country enters a “crucial phase.” Johnson said hospitals are now filling up with more COVID- 19 patients than in March, when he ordered a national lockdown.

“These figures are flashing at us like dashboard warnings in a passenger jet, and we must act now,” he said during a televised news conference.

Big turnout as early in- person voting starts in Georgia.

ATLANTA » The chance to cast ballots on Georgia’s first day of in- person early voting Monday had thousands of people waiting for hours to make their voices heard.

Eager voters endured waits of six hours or more in Cobb County, which was once solidly Republican but has voted for Democrats in recent elections, and joined lines that wrapped around buildings in solidly Democratic DeKalb County. They also turned out in big numbers in north Georgia’s Floyd County, where support for President Donald Trump is strong.

With record turnout expected for this year’s presidential election and fears about exposure to the coronavirus, election officials and advocacy groups have been encouraging people to vote early, either in person or by absentee ballot.

EU agrees to sanction Lukashenko, but gives him time to back down.

BRUSSELS » European Union foreign ministers agreed Monday to impose sanctions on President Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus, widely seen as having stolen the recent election — but they also appeared to offer him a way out of the penalties.

The proposed sanctions must first go through legal vetting and may not be implemented if Lukashenko engages in serious talks with the opposition about new elections and eases a crackdown against protesters.

Some 40 Belarusian officials have already been sanctioned with an asset freeze and a travel ban. After a harsh crackdown on protesters in Belarus on Sunday, the EU foreign ministers, meeting in Luxembourg, agreed to expand the list to include the authoritarian president and others.

Bangladesh to allow death penalty for rape convictions.

The government of Bangladesh has approved measures to allow for the death penalty for rape, after several high- profile sexual assault cases set off widespread protests in recent weeks.

Khandker Anwarul Islam, the Bangladeshi Cabinet secretary, told reporters in a news conference Monday that ministers had approved an amendment to the country’s existing law that would elevate the maximum punishment for rape to death, from life in prison.

A presidential declaration Tuesday is expected to put the provision into law by amending the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act, officials said. Parliament is not in session because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Iran breaks its single- day record for virus deaths, cases.

TEHRAN, IRAN » For the second day in a row, Iran shattered its single- day record for new deaths and infections from the coronavirus, with 272 people confirmed dead among more than 4,200 new cases on Monday.

Like in many other countries, the spiraling outbreak in Iran reflects the government’s contradictory virus response. This month, as the daily recorded death toll reached the triple digits, authorities announced tighter restrictions for the hard- hit capital of Tehran. Recently reopened universities and schools, as well as libraries, mosques, cinemas, museums and beauty salons, were shut down.

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