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Friday, April 17, 2020, 22:24
'Please avoid going out,' Abe appeals as epidemic widens
By Agencies
Friday, April 17, 2020, 22:24 By Agencies

A Japan Post employee loads face masks known as "Abenomasks" (Abe's masks) on a motorbike to distribute among residents to help against the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus, in Tokyo on April 17, 2020. (CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP)

SYDNEY / DUBAI / SINGAPORE / TOKYO - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made a forceful appeal to the nation on Friday to stay indoors to avoid further coronavirus contagion, in his starkest remarks since the crisis began.

New cases hit a daily record in the capital, Tokyo, before the speech in which Abe said this week’s nationwide expansion of a state of emergency was prompted partly by fear that medical services could fail in rural areas home to many elderly.

Please avoid going out

Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister, Japan  

“Please avoid going out,” Abe said, adding that reductions in person-to-person contact in Tokyo and Osaka, two of Japan’s hardest-hit regions, were still well short of targeted levels. “Everything depends on the action of each individual.”

Tokyo remains the hardest-hit, with a record 201 additional cases reported by its governor on Friday, for a total of 2,796. Japan’s total infections stand at more than 9,000, with 190 deaths, according to a tally by national broadcaster NHK.

Japan’s Cabinet Office, which helps to coordinate policy, reported its third case of an official testing positive for the virus. The victim, who was not identified, is in his 50s and works on the council for science, technology and innovation.

Abe expressed support on Friday for the role of the World Health Organization in the campaign against the new coronavirus, in contrast with US President Donald Trump who has vowed to cut US funding to the agency.

Abe told a news conference he had told fellow Group of Seven leaders on Thursday that “the international community, centring on the WHO, must cooperate to fight this infectious disease, which is having a global impact” and Japan would “firmly” support it.

Australia

Australians were strongly urged to sign up for a controversial mobile phone app that will track their movements as officials warned on Friday that public life could be constrained for another year because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Australia has so far avoided the high numbers of coronavirus casualties reported around the world after closing its borders and imposing strict “social distancing” measures for the past month.

The daily growth rate of reported new infections has steadied in the low percentage single digits, from about 25 percent several weeks ago, for a total of about 6,500 infections, including 63 deaths.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said some measures, like the rule requiring people to stand at least 1.5 metres apart, would likely remain for several months, given there was no guarantee a vaccine would be developed in that time.

Afghanistan

The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases has risen to 906 in Afghanistan, said Wahidullah Mayar, the spokesman for Public Health Ministry on Friday.

According to the official, 66 new positive cases of the disease have been confirmed in the country over the past 24 hours with 26 in the capital city Kabul.

Combodia 

The Senate of Cambodia on Friday passed a draft law on state of emergency amid the spread of COVID-19, according to a Senate's press statement.

The draft bill was made after the country has seen a spike in COVID-19 cases. According to the health ministry, Cambodia has so far recorded a total of 122 confirmed cases of COVID-19, with 98 patients cured as of Friday.

A small number of people visit the coast near Coogee beach in Sydney on April 16, 2020 as all beaches remained closed. (SAEED KHAN / AFP)

India

India's federal health ministry Friday evening said the death toll due to COVID-19 in India rose to 452 and the total number of confirmed cases in the country reached 13,835.

This is a jump of 15 deaths and an increase of 448 cases since Friday morning.

Mumbai crossed the 2,000 cases mark with the addition of 107 new cases of novel coronavirus testing positive on Thursday.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi Friday lauded the announcements made by country's central banking institution -- the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and said these measures will enhance liquidity and improve credit supply.

Indonesia

Indonesia reported on Friday 407 new coronavirus cases, taking the total number of cases to 5,923 and surpassing the Philippines as the country with the highest number of infections in Southeast Asia.

Health ministry official Achmad Yurianto also reported 24 new deaths attributed to the disease, taking the total to 420, and said Indonesia has performed 42,000 tests for the virus.

Indonesia will provide more business sectors with tax breaks to help mitigate the impact of COVID-19 pandemic, officials said on Friday.

Indonesia has to be prepared for the grim outlook of the global economy caused by the pandemic, Indonesian Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said.

All the international organizations have significantly revised down the global economic projections as the virus keeps spreading rapidly, she said.

READ MORE: Singapore firms ramp up COVID-19 PCR and rapid test kits production

Israel

Israel's Ministry of Health reported on Friday five new deaths from COVID-19 overnight, bringing the death toll in the country to 148, as the number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus in reached 12,855, of whom 2,967 patients have recovered.

Jerusalem’s al-Aqsa mosque compound will be closed to Muslim worshippers throughout the holy fasting month of Ramadan due to the coronavirus epidemic, Muslim clerics at Islam’s third-holiest site said on Thursday.

Based on principles suggested by Israel's National Security Council, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Thursday a "cautious and gradual" plan to resume business activity and ease closure restrictions.

Meanwhile, the country is heading off shortages of disposable surgical masks by mass-producing washable versions sized to fit everyone from children to bearded men who shun shaving due to their religion. 

Iraq

The Iraqi Health Ministry on Thursday confirmed 19 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of infections to 1,434.

So far, out of the total confirmed cases, 80 died and 856 others recovered. 

An aerial view shows a deserted boulevard in the Saudi holy city of Mecca on April 8, 2020, during the novel coronavirus pandemic crisis. (BANDAR ALDANDANI / AFP)

Kuwait

Kuwait on Friday reported two more COVID-19 death cases and 134 new cases, bringing the total number of confirmed infections to 1,658 and total death cases to 5, the health ministry said in a statement.

Among the new cases are three Kuwaiti citizens who returned from Britain, Iran and Saudi Arabia, the statement said, adding 126 have a history of contact with infected patients.

The cause of the infection for the other five is still under investigation, it noted.

Kuwait announced on Thursday that its civil aviation directorate general will operate 75 flights in the next phase for evacuating citizens abroad who face the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, the state news agency reported.

Malaysia

Malaysia recorded 69 new COVID-19 cases, the fewest in more than a month, the Health Ministry said on Friday.

It is also the second double-digit increase in three days. The number of COVID-19 cases in Malaysia totaled at 5,251 after the latest increase.

New Zealand

New Zealand justified its tough lockdown policies despite a significant drop in the number of coronavirus cases on Friday, with officials citing two new deaths as evidence of the risk from lifting social restrictions too soon.

The country reported just eight fresh COVID-19 cases, the first single digit increase in weeks, taking to the total to 1,409.

However, the two new deaths took the death toll to 11, around half of which are linked to an elderly care home in Christchurch.

Oman

The Omani Ministry of Health announced on Thursday 109 new confirmed cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of cases in the country to 1,019.

It also reported 45 new recovered case, bringing the total number of the recoveries in the country to 176.

The death toll from the virus remained at four, the ministry added, calling on everyone to observe the procedures for quarantine, not go to public places or places of worship, and ensure public hygiene. 

ALSO READ: Japan's Abe declares nationwide state of emergency

Palestine

The Palestinian Authority announced late Thursday the total cases infected with COVID-19 in the Palestinian territories reached 376.

Ibrahim Melhem clarified that the confirmed cases included 282 in the West Bank, 13 in the Gaza Strip and 81 in East Jerusalem.

PNG

Papua New Guinea's (PNG) Prime Minister James Marape entered precautionary isolation on Thursday after potentially coming in contact with COVID-19, as the country recorded five new cases, taking the total to seven.

Qatar

A total of 392 new cases of the novel coronavirus were detected in Qatar, raising the total number of infections up to 4,103, the health ministry announced on Thursday.

Nine people recovered, bringing the number of recoveries in the Gulf state to 415, while the death cases stand at seven, the official Qatar News Agency said, quoting a ministry statement.

Men look out from a dormitory used by foreign workers at Cochrane Lodge 2, which has been made an isolation area to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus, in Singapore on April 15, 2020. (ROSLAN RAHMAN / AFP)

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia, the current G20 chair, said on Thursday it has pledged US$500 million to support global efforts to combat the coronavirus pandemic and urged other countries and organisations to help bridge an US$8 billion financing gap as the country confirmed on Thursday 518 new COVID-19 cases, raising the tally of infections in the kingdom to 6,380, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

The Ministry of Health spokesman Mohammed Al-Abdulaali said in the daily press brief that the kingdom registered also four coronavirus deaths to bring the death toll of the pandemic to 83.

Singapore

Singapore is assessing whether migrant workers who have recovered from coronavirus might be safer on cruise ships than back in dormitories that have become infection hotbeds, despite problems controlling onboard outbreaks encountered elsewhere.

Singapore reported 623 new coronavirus cases on Friday taking the city-state’s total infections to 5050.

The health ministry said the majority of the cases were foreign workers in dormitories, which now account for more than half of the Southeast Asian nations infections.

South Korea

The number of South Koreans who retested positive for the COVID-19 after having been released from quarantine with full recovery rose to 163.

South Korea reported 22 more cases of the COVID-19 compared to 24 hours ago as of midnight Friday local time, raising the total number of infections to 10,635.

The daily caseload hovered below 30 for the fifth straight day. Of the new cases, 14 were imported from overseas, raising the combined number to 983.

One more death was confirmed, lifting the death toll to 230. The total fatality rate came in at 2.16 percent.

Tajikistan 

Many of the Tajik migrants whose remittances make up a bulk of the nation’s cash inflows have had to return home over the past few months as the countries where they worked lurched towards recession, Tajikistan’s government said on Friday.

The total damage to the Tajik economy from the coronavirus crisis and other external factors stood at US$650 million, the economy ministry said. The Central Asian nation’s gross domestic product stood at about US$8 billion last year.

A man wearing a face mask walks his dogs, in Tel Aviv, Israel, April 6, 2020. (ODED BALILTY / AP)

Thailand

Thailand's Center for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) on Friday said the Thai government will consider easing restrictions next week as the number of new infections is slowly dropping.

On Friday, Thailand confirmed 28 new COVID-19 cases, taking the total to 2,700 with one fatality reported.

The death toll stands at 47 and 1,689 have recovered.

The Philippines 

A total of 766 healthcare workers in the Philippines have contracted the novel coronavirus, the Department of Health (DOH) of the Philippines said on Friday.

Out of the 766, Vergeire said 339 were doctors and 242 nurses. The DOH did not mention the exact professions of the remaining 185 healthcare workers.

The DOH reported on Friday 218 new infections from COVID-19, bringing the total number of the coronavirus disease cases in the country to 5,878.

The DOH also reported that 25 more coronavirus patients have died, bringing the death toll to 387.

The United Arab Emirates

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Thursday announced 460 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 5,825.

 A total of 61 more patients have made full recovery from the virus, taking the tally of the UAE's recoveries to 1,095, according to the ministry.

The ministry also confirmed two more deaths, pushing the country's death toll to 35.

READ MORE: Dormitory infections push S'pore virus cases to new record

Turkey

Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca on Thursday confirmed 4,801 new COVID-19 cases and 125 more deaths from the virus in Turkey.

The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country rose to 74,193, while the death toll surged to 1,643, Koca tweeted.

Turkey conducted a total of 40,427 tests for the coronavirus in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of tests carried out so far to 518,143, he said.

Iran

Iran’s death toll from the new coronavirus rose by 89 in the past 24 hours to reach 4,958 on Friday, health ministry spokesman Kianush Jahanpur said on state TV.

The total number of cases of infection reached 79,494, of which 3,563 were in critical condition, he said.

Iran has got closer to the containment of the COVID-19 outbreak in most of the country's provinces, Minister of Health and Medical Education Saeed Namaki said on Friday.

Pakistan

The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases has soared to 7,025 with 135 deaths in Pakistan while 1,765 infected patients have fully recovered, according to the data updated by the country's health ministry Friday.

Out of the total 7,025 confirmed cases, the country's eastern Punjab, the worst-hit province, reported 3,276 followed by southern Sindh province that reported 2,008 confirmed cases.


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