A major music festival scheduled for August has been cancelled, as cases of COVID-19 in Malta rose sharply again for the first time in weeks. 

The Summer Daze Malta festival was set to draw large crowds with events at Ta' Qali and several other locations around Malta between August 9 and 16. Over two previous editions, the festival has drawn top names such as Rita Ora, Martin Garrix, Tyga, David Guetta and others. 

Organisers announced the event's postponement to 2021 on Sunday, citing "the current situation" but providing no further details. 

The postponement comes as the number of new coronavirus cases linked to the Hotel Takeover Malta 2020 party rose to 15. 

The outbreak at the weekend-long party has prompted calls for a ban on mass events from various quarters, in an effort to prevent a resurgence of the virus. 

A similar party planned at the same hotel the following weekend was cancelled at the last minute, with the hotel saying the the decision had been made "out of an abundance of caution". 

Restrictions on events with large groups of people were lifted in Malta in July along with a commercial flight ban, leaving event organisers free to plan large-scale events.

On Sunday, Prime Minister Robert Abela played down fears over a second wave of the virus, insisting the country would "remain open for business" after shops, bars, restaurants and hotels reopened in June after having been shuttered for months. 

There are currently 26 active cases of coronavirus in Malta, up from a low of just three on July 17. There have been a total of 700 cases and nine deaths since the start of the pandemic.