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Wednesday, March 25, 2020, 22:51
Spain's toll surpasses that of China
By Agencies
Wednesday, March 25, 2020, 22:51 By Agencies

In this March 21, 2020 photo, a woman pushes a cart with her belongings as she walks along an empty street in downtown Barcelona, Spain. (PHOTO / AP)

PANAMA CITY / WASHINGTON / LISBON / ROME / ABUJA / OTTAWA / SAO PAULO / BRASILIA / FREETOWN / KINSHASA / PORT-AU-PRINCE / MADRID / LIMA / UNITED NATIONS / TRIPOLI / BERLIN / MANNHEIM / OSLO / MOSCOW / JOHANNESBURG / LOS ANGELES / PARIS / AMSTERDAM / BAMAKO - 

Spain registered an overnight jump of 738 deaths from coronavirus on Wednesday, pushing the death toll above that of China as the country struggles to cope with soaring numbers of infections.

With 3,434 fatalities, Spain now has the second-highest number of deaths globally after Italy’s 6,820, in an outbreak that has seen a Madrid skating rink turned into a makeshift morgue and dozens dead in overwhelmed nursing homes across the country.

Spanish medical staff, who themselves account for thousands of infected cases, have taken out lawsuits against the government complaining of the lack of basic protective equipment like masks, scrubs and gloves.

The Spanish army has asked NATO for ventilators, protective gear and testing kits, Armed Forces Chief Miguel Villarroya said on Wednesday.

Spain is on Day 11 of a 15-day nationwide lockdown which is likely to be extended to 30 days. Schools, bars, restaurants and most shops are shuttered. Social gatherings are banned. People are confined to their homes.

The number of coronavirus cases increased by a fifth to 47,610 on Wednesday.

Britain 

Britain's parliament is set to suspend sitting for at least four weeks from Wednesday as part of the government's efforts to slow the spread of coronavirus.

Parliament was due to close for a three-week Easter break from March 31, but a motion on Wednesday's order paper proposes that it starts a week early, as fears grow that politicians and staff are being put at risk by continuing to work there.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Wednesday the government would set out “in the next couple of days” what support it would be giving self-employed workers to help them through the coronavirus outbreak.

Parliament was due to close for a three-week Easter break from March 31, but a motion on Wednesday's order paper proposes that it starts a week early

Johnson also said that it should be possible to get more trains on the London Underground to tackle overcrowding happening because of a reduced service during the coronavirus outbreak.

Prince Charles, the 71-year-old heir to the British throne, has tested positive for coronavirus but is in good health and is now self isolating in Scotland.

The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Britain reached 8,077 as of Tuesday morning, according to the latest figure from the Department of Health and Social Care. A total of 422 patients have died, the department said.

READ MORE: Britain wakes up to coronavirus lockdown, Egypt declares curfew

Britain toughened its approach to the coronavirus outbreak after estimates of the number of people who would need invasive mechanical ventilation in intensive care doubled, a top epidemiologist who advised the government said.

Meanwhile, More than 170,000 people have signed up to help the National Health Service tackle the virus outbreak, after Health Minister Matt Hancock called for 250,000 volunteers to deliver food and medicines, provide transport for patients and supplies, and to telephone those who are becoming lonely because of self-isolation.

Jails in England and Wales have been put on immediate lockdown with all visits cancelled, according to the union which represents prison officers.

US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, third from left, accompanied by White House Legislative Affairs Director Eric Ueland, center, and acting White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, second from right, walks to the offices of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucy on Capitol Hill in Washington, March 24, 2020. (PATRICK SEMANSKY / AP)

US

US senators and Trump administration officials have reached an agreement on a massive economic stimulus bill to alleviate the economic impact of the coronavirus outbreak, White House official Eric Ueland said early on Wednesday. 

The package, expected to be worth US$2 trillion, had been expected to include a US$500 billion fund to help hard-hit industries and a comparable amount for direct payments of up to US$3,000 to millions of US families.

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump pressed his case for a re-opening of the US economy by Easterl despite a surge in coronavirus cases, downplaying the pandemic as he did in its early stages by comparing it to the seasonal flu.

We lose thousands and thousands of people a year to the flu. We don't turn the country off.You can destroy a country this way by closing it down.

Donald Trump, US president

Trump said Americans could continue practicing social-distancing measures, which health experts say are crucial to prevent infection, while also going back to work.

"We lose thousands and thousands of people a year to the flu. We don't turn the country off," Trump said. "You can destroy a country this way by closing it down."

White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said the administration was looking at low-infection areas where the economy might be reopened after the shutdown period ends next week.

Meanwhile, the Trump administration was debating whether to defer payments of duties on imported goods from around the world for three months, people familiar with the talks said.

The number of COVID-19 cases in the United States reached 50,206 with 606 deaths as of 3 pm US Eastern Time on Tuesday (1900 GMT), according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University.

ALSO READ: WHO: US could be next 'virus epicenter'

The state of New York has become the epicenter of the COVID-19 outbreak in the country, with 25,665 cases reported. New York's Mayor Bill de Blasio said he expected April to be tougher than March and that May would be tougher than April.

Los Angeles County confirmed four more deaths linked to COVID-19 on Tuesday, including a youth under the age of 18, possibly the first minor in the United States to die from the disease.

People line up outside Elmhurst Hospital Center to be tested for the coronavirus. In the Queens borough of New York on March 24, 2020. (MARY ALTAFFER / AP)

The Trump administration will use the Defense Production Act (DPA) on Tuesday for the first time, to procure some 60,000 test kits to aid against the COVID-19 pandemic, said Peter Gaynor, administrator of the US Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

But Vice-President Mike Pence, who leads the White House coronavirus task force, said in comments on Fox News that it has not been necessary to put the emergency measure to use.

In a statement late on Tuesday, FEMA said it did not need to use the authority. 

Meanwhile, the United States is launching a task force to address market manipulation, hoarding and price gouging related to the coronavirus pandemic, following an order by Trump to crack down on such crimes.

Zimbabwe

Customs officials at Zimbabwe’s biggest airport stopped reporting for work on Wednesday, fearing exposure to coronavirus and a lack of measures to prevent its spread, their union said.

Zimbabwe has recorded one death from three confirmed cases of coronavirus, but the opposition and critics of President Emmerson Mnangagwa accuse his government of under-reporting the number of cases. The government denies this.

Vatican

Pope Francis and Christians worldwide recited “The Lord’s Prayer” on Wednesday to ask God to stop the coronavirus pandemic which has infected nearly half a million people, disrupted countless lives and shut down churches and other public venues.

Francis invited all other Christian leaders and individual Christians on Sunday to recite the ‘Our Father’ prayer simultaneously at noon Italian time (1100 GMT) on Wednesday.

Ukraine

Ukraine’s government approved on Wednesday declaring an emergency across the whole country for the next 30 days over the spread of the coronavirus, Prime Minister Denys Shmygal said at a televised government meeting.

Previously an emergency had been declared in certain regions and in the capital Kiev.

Ukraine has reported 113 cases as of March 25, including 4 deaths. The ministers, all of whom wore masks, also approved to extend lockdown measures already in place for another month until April 24.British Army lorries cross Westminster Bridge towards the Houses of Parliament in London, March 24, 2020. (MATT DUNHAM / AP)

Albania

The Albanian government declared a state of natural disaster late Tuesday night as the confirmed number of COVID-19 cases across the country have been on the rise, according to local sources.   

The Inter-Ministerial Committee on Civil Emergencies (KNEC) will be in charge of the coordination of state institutions and private entities' actions, as well as for the financial and material resources for coping with the COVID-19 epidemic for a 30-day period.

Senegal

The Senegalese Ministry of Health and Social Action said Wednesday morning that 13 new cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed across the country, bringing the total to 99.

Brazil

Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro on Wednesday doubled down on his view that state-level shutdowns due to the coronavirus outbreak were likely to cripple the Brazilian economy and raise unemployment, urging on Twitter that they be reversed.

The president, a far-right army captain, was roundly criticized for making that argument in a televised address to the nation on Tuesday, in which he minimized the likely impact of the “little flu” in Brazil.

Coronavirus deaths in Brazil on Tuesday rose to 46 from 34, and the number of cases rose to 2,201 from 1,891, according to government figures.

Economic prospects for Brazil, Latin America's largest economy, are worsening amid the pandemic. The slowdown is set to worsen as Sao Paulo, Brazil's largest city, began a two-week lockdown on Tuesday. 

Italy

Fatalities in Italy from the coronavirus rose by 743 on Tuesday, the second highest daily tally since the outbreak emerged in northern regions on Feb 21, while the total number of confirmed cases had reached 69,176.

A total of 6,820 people have died from the infection in barely a month.

The Italian government has hiked fines for people who defy a lockdown order, Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said on Tuesday.

Anyone caught leaving their home without good reason will now face fines of between 400 euros to 3,000 euros (US$430 to US$3,227) against a previous 206 euros, Conte said in a television address.

A decree issued on Tuesday gave the government the power to extend the deadline to July 31. However, Conte denied planning to keep the lockdown in place until that date, saying he hoped to loosen curbs "well before then".

A woman wearing a protective mask walks by a shop with bears arranged in line to show social distancing. In Paris, France, March 24, 2020. (FRANCOIS MORI / AP)

France

France will roll out a 4 billion euro (US$4.33 billion) liquidity support plan for startups in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, junior minister Cédric O said on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the head of the hospitals federation said that the number of people in France who have died from the coronavirus is much higher than the official daily government tally, which does not include those dying at home or in retirement homes.

France became the fifth country to report more than 1,000 deaths from the coronavirus on Tuesday.

A government body dealing with the outbreak suggested the national lockdown imposed last week for an initial 15 days should last at least six weeks, but Health Minister Olivier Veran said he could not determine at this stage when the lockdown would end. 

Health agency chief Jerome Salomon on Tuesday reported 240 new deaths from coronavirus on Tuesday for a total of 1,100.

He said the total number of infections in France had risen to 22,300, a 12 percent jump in 24 hours.

Netherlands

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the Netherlands rose by 852 to 6,412 on Wednesday, health authoritiessaid, adding that they see signs that the rate of increase of the virus’s spread in the country is slowing.

Deaths rose by 80 to 356, the National Institute of Health (RIVM) said in its daily update on the outbreak.

Mali

Mali reported on Wednesday its first two cases of coronavirus, the government said in a statement.

The two patients are Malian nationals, a 49 year-old woman from Bamako and a 62 year-old man living in Kayes. They arrived in the country from France on March 12 and 16, respectively.

Congo

Felix Tshisekedi, president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), declared on Tuesday a state of emergency across the country to fight the coronavirus pandemic.

"I will requisition the units of the Congolese National Police and those of our Armed Forces in order to organize mixed patrols to enforce these measures, for the good of all," Tshisekedi said in a televised speech.

The president also announced the closure of all the country's borders, except for traffic of trucks, ships and cargo planes with essential freight.

The DRC has reported a total of 48 cases so far, including three deaths and a recovery.

Sierra Leone

Besides the DRC, Sierra Leone's President Julius Maada Bio on Tuesday also declared a state of public emergency as a preventive measure against COVID-19.

The president's declaration made it clear that it is not a lockdown and nobody should use it as an excuse to hoard goods, hike prices, or engage in acts of lawlessness.

Though no case has been reported in the country, the government has taken a raft of measures to prevent the pandemic including a ban on international flights. 

A screen divides a cashier, center, and a customer, left, at a pay point in a Spar supermarket in Johannesburg, South Africa, March 24, 2020. (DENIS FARRELL / AP)

Tunisia

Tunisian health authorities announced Wednesday the fourth death from COVID-19 in the country.

The case is an elderly man, who died Tuesday in the quarantine department at Farhat Hashad Hospital in the city of Sousse in eastern Tunisia.

Cape Verde

Cape Verde's Health minister Arlindo do Rosario confirmed on Wednesday the fourth positive case of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in the archipelago.

According to the minister, the patient is a 43-year-old citizen living in Praia, who arrived from France on March 18 and developed a respiratory condition with cough and fever after returning.

South Sudan

South Sudan has imposed a 30-day night-time curfew as part of measures aimed at forestalling the spread of COVID-19 into the east African country.

President Salva Kiir issued an executive order Tuesday night imposing curfew all over the country from 8 pm local time to 6 am and announced all security organs and law enforcement agencies are directed to ensure this order is strictly adhered to.

South Africa

South African officials sought to identify quarantine sites across the country on Wednesday, as the number of confirmed coronavirus cases rose to 709 from 554 and the health minister warned infections were expected to keep rising.

President Cyril Ramaphosa has been praised for ordering some of the toughest measures on the continent to try to halt the spread of the virus, including a 21-day lockdown from midnight on Thursday, deploying the army to support police and ordering underground mines to suspend operations.

Public Works Minister Patricia de Lille told a news conference that her ministry had identified more than 16,000 beds in potential quarantine facilities, including government buildings, hotels, holiday properties and hospitals.

Portugal

The Portuguese government announced on Tuesday that the suspension of air links with Italy will be extended for another 14 days due to the serious COVID-19 situation in that country, Lusa News Agency reported.

The new order of extension takes effect at 00:00 on Wednesday and runs until April 7.

A total of 2,362 people have been infected with COVID-19 and 33 have died from the disease in Portugal, according to the latest from the health authorities. 

Guinea-Bissau

Guinea-Bissau President Umaro Sissoco Embalo on Wednesday reported the country's first two confirmed cases of COVID-19.  

Belarus

The total number of COVID-19 cases rose to 86 in Belarus, the country's health ministry said Wednesday.

Twenty-nine people who had clinical symptoms of the virus have been discharged or will soon be discharged from hospitals.

Another 57 people are under medical observation and treatment. Additional checks for two more patients are being conducted due to the ambiguity of the results, the ministry said.

Zambia

Zambia on Wednesday said the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country has risen to 12.

In an address to the nation on state television, President Edgar Lungu said 11 of the victims recently traveled to and acquired the disease from outside the country while one was infected locally.

Ghana

Ghana's confirmed cases of COVID-19 have climbed to 68, the Ghana Health Service (GHS) said on Wednesday.

While 30 of the cases came from the general population, 38 are travelers quarantined since March 21, the GHS said.

Nigeria

Nigerian Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Wednesday tested negative for the COVID-19, according to his spokesman.

Governor Bala Mohammed had been diagnosed with the coronavirus and was in quarantine.

The came hours after a source with direct knowledge of the matter said that Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari's influential chief of staff,  Abba Kyari, has tested positive for the virus.

As of Tuesday, Nigeria had 42 confirmed cases of coronavirus, two of whom had recovered, and one deat

The presidency said late on Tuesday that parliament was adjourned for two weeks.

Lagos state governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu announced that all parks, gyms and public markets in the commercial capital, apart from those selling food, water, medicine or "other essential life-saving products", would close on Thursday for at least seven days.

An ambulance passes the hospital for coronavirus patients in Kommunarka settlement, outside Moscow, Russia, March 24, 2020. (PAVEL GOLOVKIN / AP)

Russia

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday said he was postponing a nationwide vote on constitutional changes that would allow him to extend his rule due to the worsening situation with coronavirus.

The vote, on changes that include scrapping a constitutional ban on Putin running again for president in 2024, had been planned for April 22.

Putin also announced a week of paid leave for all Russians to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

The army has been ordered to carry out drills designed to increase its readiness to fight the novel coronavirus if necessary, the Defence Ministry said on Wednesday.

Alibaba and its co-founder Jack Ma said on Wednesday they had sent medical equipment, including masks and coronavirus tests, to Russia to help it fight an outbreak.

The number of coronavirus cases in Russia has surged to 658, with new daily cases at a record 163, the government's official coronavirus website showed on Wednesday.

Separately, Moscow introduced a raft of new measures on Wednesday aimed at curbing the spread of coronavirus, including a temporary ban on holding any public events and the suspension of free public transport for the over 65s, the city’s mayor said on his website.

The mayor of Moscow told Putin on Tuesday that the number of coronavirus cases in the Russian capital far exceeded the official figures, as Putin donned a protective suit and respirator to visit a hospital.

Russia has so far reported one death.

The government on Tuesday closed nightclubs, cinemas and children's entertainment centres to slow the spread of the virus.

It also asked officials to prepare a list of Russian citizens willing to return to Russia from other countries hit by the coronavirus, the government said.

Panama

Panama's government said on Tuesday it would widen a curfew to slow the spread of the coronavirus and require people to be in quarantine at all hours beginning on Wednesday, as the number of cases again jumped and two more people died.

Panama's health minister said the Central American country registered 443 cases of the virus, up from 345 the day before, and there were a total of eight deaths.

Guatemala

Lawmakers in Guatemala voted on Tuesday to extend the state of emergency due to the coronavirus for another 30 days. 

The country now has 21 confirmed cases of the infection, the government said.

Canada

After almost a day of wrangling Canada’s House of Commons agreed early on Wednesday to approve a C$27 billion (US$18.8 billion) stimulus bill to help people and businesses deal with the coronavirus outbreak.

The bill - which also includes C$55 billion in the form of tax deferrals - must now be approved by the unelected Senate, which will meet later on Wednesday. Government officials say they anticipate senators will quickly approve the measures.

The number of people in Canada diagnosed with the novel coronavirus jumped to about 2,800 on Tuesday from just over 2,000 on Sunday, and the death toll hit 28, four more than the day before.

Germany

German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government took a step toward declaring a state of emergency to unlock a historic rescue package to cushion the blow of the coronavirus pandemic.

Finance Minister Olaf Scholz urged lawmakers to open up debt limits to combat a crisis that threatens modern life. New borrowing of 156 billion euros (US$169 billion), equivalent to half of Germany’s normal annual spending, will be used to fund social benefits and direct aid to virus-hit companies.

Germany’s ruling coalition cast aside infighting to push for emergency powers, abandoning its long-standing balanced-budget policy. Lawmakers will vote on the legislation later on Wednesday.

The number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Germany has risen to 31,554 and 149 people have died of the disease, statistics from the RKI health institute showed on Wednesday.

Though a relatively low toll reported, a health ministry spokesman said it would be wrong to read too much into numbers showing a lower relative rate of deaths from the coronavirus outbreak in Germany compared to other countries, since Germany still stood at the beginning of the epidemic.

Meanwhile, North-Rhine Westphalia plans the release of some 1,000 prisoners to reduce the risk of coronavirus infection, its justice minister said on Wednesday according to an online report by Focus magazine.

Separately, German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives and their junior coalition partner - the Social Democrats (SPD) - support including aid for start-ups in the government’s coronavirus economic aid package, a document seen by Reuters shows.

German hospitals with spare capacity took patients from Italy and France on Tuesday, 

Ireland

Ireland banned all non-essential travel within the country and shut non-essential retail on Tuesday to battle coronavirus as it significantly increased income support for those already left unemployed and workers at risk of joining them.

Prime Minister Leo Varadkar asked people to stay at home "if at all possible" and only leave home to go to work, if they cannot work from home and attendance is essential.

The move came as the number of cases in Ireland rose to 1,329 on Tuesday from 1,125 a day earlier as a seventh person died. 

Tourists walk past the closed stalls outside the Anthropology Museum in Mexico City, March 24, 2020. (FERNANDO LLANO / AP)

Mexico

Mexico temporarily halted the processing of asylum requests from Tuesday, its refugee agency said, the latest measure in North America aimed at stopping the spread of coronavirus that have also limited access to asylum.

Migration authorities will resume processing applications on April 20, Mexico's refugee agency COMAR said, in line with a government order for various public offices to halt certainfunctions.

The foreign ministry will put the issuance of passports on hold from March 27 to April 19, it said on Tuesday.

Mexico reported 405 coronavirus cases on Tuesday, up from 367 a day earlier, and five deaths overall.

Haiti

In impoverished Haiti, where access to clean water is tricky and education is lacking, Boy and Girl Scouts are taking to the streets with portable sinks to allow passersby to wash their hands and teach them the importance of doing so to ward off the novel coronavirus.

The town hall of the capital Port-au-Prince has also installed some hand washing stations in public squares and at the entrance of some public markets.

Authorities last week declared a state of emergency, closing Haiti’s borders and shuttering schools and places of worship after detecting the first two coronavirus cases. The official tally has since risen to six.

Cameroon

Cameroon reported on Tuesday its first death from COVID-19, according to the minister of public health Manaouda Malachie.

"Unfortunately, we have just recorded our first death from COVID-19 in Cameroon. This is patient 3 who came to us from Italy already very affected by the disease," Manaouda tweeted.

Libya

The Minister of Health of Libya's UN-backed government, Ehmid Bin Omar, on Tuesday announced the first novel coronavirus infection in the country.

The UN-backed Prime Minister Fayez Serraj recently declared state of emergency and mobilization against the virus.

The government's measures against the coronavirus include closing airports, border crossings, education institutions and mosques, banning large gatherings, and imposing curfew.  

Rwanda

The Rwandan Health Ministry on Tuesday reported four more COVID-19 cases, bringing the total to 40 in less than two weeks since an outbreak in the country.

After effective treatment, the first group of COVID-19 patients in Rwanda could be discharged soon from hospital, Rwandan Health Minister Daniel Ngamije told Xinhua Tuesday in a telephone interview.

Algeria

Algeria on Tuesday said the toll from the novel coronavirus in the country reached 19. Thirty-four new infections were confirmed in the past 24 hours, raising the total number of infected patients to 264. 

Also on Tuesday, Algeria started imposing a curfew in the capital Algiers from 7 pm-7 am, and a full lockdown in neighboring province Blida, which will last for 10 days.  

Egypt

Egypt registered 40 new COVID-19 case on Wednesday, raising the country's total number to 442 while one death was reported, bringing the total number of fatalities to 21.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Tuesday assigned the government to take all necessary preventive measures to fight the novel coronavirus.

Also on Tuesday, Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly announced a nationwide curfew in an attempt to contain the spread of the virus.

Bulgaria

Bulgaria has imposed a temporary entry ban on trucks from more than 65 countries that plan to pass through the Balkan state en route to Turkey, the health ministry said on Wednesday, after Turkey imposed stringent coronavirus restrictions on truck drivers.

Chile

Chile's President Sebastian Pinera on Tuesday enacted a law that regulates remote working as millions are told to stay home amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The law essentially formalizes remote work by making it obligatory for a company to sign a contract with anyone working for it from home. It also allows the two sides to decide how much of the work week will be carried out at home.

Labor Minister Maria Jose Zaldivar said the law also calls on employers to respect previously agreed salaries, and to supply the needed equipment.

Chile has surpassed 1,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus since the outbreak began in the Andean nation, the health ministry said on Wednesday, among the highest tallies in Latin America.

Hundred of birds line the shore at Agua Dulce beach which is usually populated with people, in Lima, Peru, March 24, 2020. (MARTIN MEJIA / AP)

Peru

The death toll from the coronavirus in Peru hit 7 on Tuesday, while the number of confirmed cases reached 416, the country's Ministry of Health said.

Finland

Finland's government on Tuesday decided to ask parliamentary approval for powers to isolate the Uusimaa province, including the capital Helsinki, and to close restaurants, as the tally rose to 792 by Tuesday afternoon.

Slovenia

The Slovenian government announced on Tuesday a package of economic stimulus measures worth roughly 2 billion euros (US$2.15 billion) to mitigate the effects of the coronavirus epidemic.

Prime Minister Janez Jansa said the measures were designed to protect jobs and keep society in general functioning through the crisis. They will be in place until May 31, according to Jansa.

Meanwhile, Slovenia will introduce health checks on Wednesday on its border with Austria, a measure already in place on its border with Italy, a government spokesman said.

The number of confirmed cases in Slovenia rose by 38 to 480 by 10 am on Tuesday. The country also saw its fourth coronavirus-related death, according to STA.

Norway

Norway on Tuesday extended curbs on a range of public and private institutions until April 13, including the closure of schools and nurseries, to try to halt the spread of the coronavirus.

Among the new measures, the government also asked that no more than five people gather together outside and that indoors people keep a distance of two metres (6.6 ft) from one another, except for members of the same household.

The total number of infected people in Norway rose to 2,566 on Tuesday, up 196 from a day earlier, according to the official count by the Norwegian Institute of Public Health. Ten people have passed away as a result of the coronavirus.

Greece

Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou expressed optimism over the outcome of the battle against the novel coronavirus epidemic on Tuesday.

In her first televised address to the nation since taking office on March 13, the president called on Greeks to be united to face the unprecedented threat.

Greece's Health Ministry announced 48 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 infections, raising Greece's total to 743 and 20 fatalities from 17 a day earlier.

Greece launched on Monday a 14-day nationwide lockdown in the context of efforts to contain the further spread of the epidemic. On Wednesday there will be no military and student parades to celebrate Greece's Independence Day.

Morocco

Moroccan Health Ministry on Tuesday confirmed 27 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number to 170.

The number of deaths from the virus stands at five while six have recovered, announced Director of Epidemiology at the Ministry of Health Mohamed El Youbi.

The most infected regions are Rabat with 40 cases and Casablanca with 42 cases.

Uganda

Uganda has recorded five new cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 14, a top health official said on Wednesday.

Mozambique

Health authorities of Mozambique announced on Tuesday that two more individuals have tested positive of COVID-19 in the country, bringing the country's tally to three.

Colombia

Thousands of Colombians were rushing to return to their home cities on Tuesday while others hurried to banks, supermarkets and other shops before the late-night start of a mandatory 19-day national quarantine meant to curb the spread of coronavirus.

The quarantine will run until April 13. So far the country has reported 306 cases of the disease and three deaths.

The military is ready to help patrol streets in large cities to ensure compliance with the quarantine, Defense Minister Carlos Holmes Trujillo said.

Czech Republic

The Czech parliament's lower chamber approved a package of emergency government measures on Tuesday that included temporary tax relief for self-employed workers as the government seeks to ease the economic strain from the new coronavirus outbreak.

The chamber also passed the finance ministry's proposal to raise this year's planned deficit of the central state budget five-fold to 200 billion crowns.

Namibia

Namibia's Health Minister Kalumbi Shangula announced on Tuesday that travel into Namibia from all countries is banned with immediate effect for a period of 30 days after the Southwest African country recorded its seventh confirmed case of coronavirus.

Namibians and permanent residents of the country are also banned from leaving, and if they return from abroad they must go into mandatory supervised quarantine for 14 days at their own cost.

Those residents will only be allowed to return into the country if their mission is critical to national interest, such as the safety and security of Namibia, the minister added. 

The government also announced a partial lockdown of the Khomas region, which houses the capital Windhoek and the Erongo region. The partial lockdown will start from midnight March 27 until midnight April 16.

Parliament has also been suspended for 21 days starting Wednesday to Thursday April 14.

51 cases reported within UN system across world

A total of 51 cases of COVID-19 have been reported within the United Nations (UN) system across the world as of Tuesday, and the physical presence of the staff at the UN Headquarters in New York City is very small, according to a UN spokesman.

According to Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, the UN chief is "reducing his time in the building.  He's working partly from home and partly from the building".

Zimbabwe


Senegal


Ghana


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