New coronavirus cases have surged to 1,308 in Tokyo - a six-month high - as fears rise of a possible dramatic increase that could flood hospitals during the Olympics that start in eight days.

Tokyo is under a fourth state of emergency, which began on Monday and requires restaurants and bars to close early and not serve alcohol through the Olympics, which start from July 23.

The tally is the highest since 1,485 cases were recorded on Jan 21 when Japan was under an earlier state of emergency and is also a jump from Wednesday’s 1,149 cases.

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