US death toll passes 10,000
Updates in Universal Coordinated Time (UTC/GMT)
11:27 Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte is expected to consult scientists on Tuesday about ways to safely end the month-long lockdown over the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed over 16,000 people in the southern European nation.
His virtual conference with the government’s scientific committee comes just one week before Italy’s closure of most businesses and factories was initially set to be lifted. However, an imminent lifting of restrictions is unlikely, as health officials warn that a recent decline in the number of reported cases only occurred because of the lockdown measures.
Italy has over 130,000 reported cases of coronavirus, with a death toll of 16,523.
11:08 There are direct links between anti-Semitism and the spread of coronavirus, according to German anti-Semitism commissioner Felix Klein.
"Conspiracy theories are booming in times of crisis," said Klein at a presentation of a government research program on anti-Semitism.
The new project, which has received funding of €12 million ($13 million), was set up to "tackle anti-Semitism with science," Research and Education Minister Anja Karliczek said. Klein believes that the current spread of anti-Semitism as a result of the coronavirus crisis underscores the relevance of the project.
"The greater people's uncertainty, the more likely they are to turn to such scapegoat theories," he said, citing false claims that the pandemic is a result of a failed biological weapons test made by the Israeli secret service.
"In recent weeks, right-wing radicals have increasingly tried to instrumentalize the coronavirus crisis for their own ends," he added.
10:34 The Association of German Certified Labs (ALM) says 332,414 coronavirus tests were carried out in Germany between March 30 and April 5, up from 313,957 the week before. ALM estimates that its testing data includes 85-90% of all tests carried out in Germany.
Last week, researchers at the Robert Koch Institute said that although testing in Germany is high compared to other nations, the country still needs to increase its rate of testing in order to manage the virus.
10:06 The German Ethics Council has called for debate on the loosening of restrictions implemented to curb the spread of coronavirus.
"It is too early to open [the restrictions] up now, but it's never too early for a public debate about the necessary criteria," said Peter Dabrock, the council’s chairman. "Everything else could be considered top-down or authoritarian," he added.
"People need images of hope when they are in catastrophic situations like this one. That motivates people to hold out," he added.
Measures to reduce the number of serious cases would have to be weighed against the social, societal and psychological consequences of the lockdown, according to the council.
Additionally, situations in which critical medical assistance was stopped in order to help younger people, "can and must be legally condemned," said member Steffen Augsburg.
The German Ethics Council offers opinions and policy recommendations on "the big questions of life," and consists of 26 scientists and experts.
09:27 The messaging app WhatsApp has moved to limit the increasing spread of misinformation through its platform. The WHO has identified an "infodemic" of false medical advice and conspiracy theories around COVID-19 online. More details here.
09:10 At least 49 inmates in a Pakistani jail have contracted coronavirus, officials said, with more than 150 additional inmates also suspected of having the disease.
The outbreak, in a jail in the eastern city of Lahore, is believed to have stemmed from an inmate who had returned from Italy last month. The inmate, who was recently arrested for smuggling narcotics, was tested on March 23.
According to a 2019 government report, more than 70,000 people are currently held in 114 different facilities across Pakistan, many of which are plagued by overcrowding and poor hygienic conditions. Pakistan currently has 3,864 confirmed cases of coronavirus, with a death toll of 54, according to Johns Hopkins University.
09:01 Japan declared a state of emergency in seven regions, including Tokyo, on Tuesday.
"As I decided that a situation feared to gravely affect people's lives and the economy has occurred... I am declaring a state of emergency," said Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
The new measures under the state of emergency are set to take effect from midnight and to last for at least a month, allowing local governors to urge people to stay inside and to call for businesses to close.
However, the regulations are lighter than those implemented in parts of Europe and the United States, with no penalties for those who fail to comply with social distancing measures.
08:11 The number of elderly people becoming infected with coronavirus in Germany is increasing, and the death toll is expected to rise, said Lothar Wieler, the head of Germany's Robert Koch Institute.
Additionally, despite a slowing in the rise of new infections, the restrictions cannot yet be relaxed, Wieler said. "We must wait the next few days to see if there is a trend in the reports," he said, adding that the count of over 30,000 people who have recovered from the virus is a "pleasing figure."
He also said the reproduction figure, ie how many people each infected person passes the virus on to, has not fallen to below 1 and was currently at between 1.2 and 1.5 — higher than a few days ago.
07:48 Finland has extended border controls until May 13 amid growing fears that cross-border commuters from Sweden could speed up the spread of coronavirus. Finnish authorities have expressed concern over Sweden’s liberal strategy regarding the pandemic, as the country has an ageing population and limited intensive care resources.
"The government's aim is to further reduce movement in the inherent commute area across the borders with Sweden and Norway," the government said in a statement.
Helsinki had already implemented curbs on travel across its northern borders, but now, only the most essential workers will be allowed to cross.
"Finns who commute to Sweden and Norway across Finland's borders must remain in quarantine-like conditions when they are in Finland," the statement said.
07:35 British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been given oxygen but is not on a ventilator, senior Cabinet minister Michael Gove told LBC radio.
"The prime minister has received some oxygen support and he is kept under, of course, close supervision," Gove said.
Johnson is a "man of great zest, with an appetite for life," he added.
The British premier was hospitalized on Sunday evening due to "persistent" coronavirus symptoms, and was moved to an intensive care unit on Monday after his condition worsened.
07:22 On March 12, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the COVID-19 outbreak a "pandemic." One of the WHO's objectives is to coordinate the international response during a global health emergency. It was founded on this day in 1948. World Health Day: What does the WHO do?
07:11 German Economy Minister Peter Altmaier said he wouldn’t be pressured to relax coronavirus-related measures after Easter. "We must not weaken now, so close to the end," Altmaier told broadcaster ZDF on Tuesday.
He also addressed a shortage in personal protective clothing for health workers, adding that it was necessary to ensure that companies in Germany start producing more protective clothing, "not at some point in time, but very soon."
06:47 France has not yet reached the peak of the coronavirus pandemic, according to Health Minister Olivier Veran.
"We are still in a worsening phase of the epidemic," Veran told broadcaster BFM TV. France currently has almost 99,000 recorded cases of coronavirus and a death toll of 8,926, according to Johns Hopkins University.
06:10 New Zealand’s health minister was demoted on Tuesday, after breaching nationwide lockdown measures by going to the beach with his family.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said she was stripping Health Minister David Clark of his role as Associate Finance Minister and demoting him to the bottom of the Cabinet rankings following the violations. He had also said he drove to a park near his home to go mountain biking.
"I've been an idiot, and I understand why people will be angry with me," Clark said in a statement.
New Zealand is halfway through a four-week planned lockdown. Under the current measures, citizens are only allowed to leave their homes for "essential personal movement," while outdoor exercise should only take place in places that can be "readily accessed from home," according to an official notice.
05:43 German Development Minister Gerd Müller called on the European Union to act quickly to protect refugees from the spread of coronavirus, in an interview with the Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung.
That action includes separating the refugee camp on the Greek island Lesbos into smaller units and bringing the camp up to the official standards of the UN refugee agency, he said, adding that he had visited Lesbos himself and had seen how 20,000 people were living in an area meant to host 3,000 people.
"So far, all of the appeals [to improve standards at the Lesbos camp] have been unfruitful. Hopefully Brussels doesn’t wait until this turns into a catastrophe," said Müller.
05:22 The Philippines on Tuesday extended the lockdown imposed on the country’s most populous island until the end of the month.
The lockdown on Luzon, which hosts the capital, Manila, and more than half of the island nation’s population, was initially set to last until April 14 but has been extended until April 30.
President Rodrigo Duterte recently made headlines for his heavy-handed approach to enforcing measures, when he threatened to "bury" those who violate quarantine. The country currently has 3,660 confirmed cases of coronavirus and a death toll of 163.
04:54 The President of El Salvador warned on Monday that security forces would confine those defying quarantine orders in "containment centers" for 30 days and confiscate their cars.
"The restrictions are the same, but we are going to be much tougher in enforcing them," President Nayib Bukele said in a televised address. He added that quarantine measures would be extended by 15 days and that the government was ramping up efforts to track down carriers of the virus. El Salvador currently has 69 reported cases, with a death toll of four.
04:45 Japan is expected to declare a state of emergency in seven regions, including Tokyo, on Tuesday. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe first announced the plan on Monday, citing "rapid increases of new infections, particularly in urban areas like Tokyo and Osaka."
The measures are set to take effect from midnight and to last for at least a month. However, the regulations are lighter than those implemented in parts of Europe and the United States, with no penalties for those who fail to comply with social distancing measures.
03:45 The UN Security Council will reportedly hold its first meeting on the coronavirus pandemic this Thursday, diplomats said. The meeting is set to be closed-door and held by teleconference.
No information has been provided on what the members will discuss, but divisions over the pandemic exist and have crippled the Security Council.
Last week, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution by consensus calling for "international cooperation" and "multilateralism" in the fight against COVID-19.
But Russia has tried to oppose the text and the US has long insisted that any meeting or text must specify that the virus first emerged in China, angering Beijing.
03:20 The Trump administration announced it had reached a deal with manufacturer 3M to allow the company to resume exporting its N95 protective masks to Canada and Latin America amid the coronavirus pandemic.
President Donald Trump had used the 1950 Defense Production Act to order the company to stop exporting the masks, which are crucial in protecting healthcare workers, in a move that outraged many officials in Canada.
"3M and the Administration worked together to ensure that this plan does not create further humanitarian implications for countries currently fighting the COVID-19 outbreak," the company said in a statement.
"We have reached a very amicable agreement with 3M for the delivery of an additional 55.5 million high quality facemasks each month," Trump said about the deal.
"We're going to be getting over the next couple of months 166.5 million masks for our frontline healthcare workers, so the 3M saga ends very happily," he added.
03:00 The number of global deaths from COVID-19 now stands at 74,169. The number of infections is 1,337,749 according to the latest (real time) data from Johns Hopkins University. The US has by far the largest number of cases at 362,759. Italy has the most deaths, with the toll currently at 16,523.
02:50 Tokyo's Nikkei 225 index opened more than 3% higher, riding on Wall Street's rally the day before, in response to declining death toll trends in Italy, Spain and New York — the hotspots of the coronavirus pandemic. Asian stocks followed suit, albeit with more modest gains.
Japan's stock market was also responded to an unprecedented stimulus package worth around 108 trillion yen ($1 trillion), or 20% of GDP, in the world's third-largest economy.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is expected to officially confirm a state of emergency in seven key regions of the country, which would provide local authorities the power to request people stay at home.
02:40 Berlin is one of Germany’s most densely populated cities. It’s also the place where decisions are being made to enforce stricter and stricter regulations. Its residents are feeling the effects of measures taken to contain the spread of coronavirus. A team of reporters has been following several Berliners for the past few weeks. This is what they found:
02:20 The World Health Organization (WHO) has taken on a central role in the fight to stem the spread of the coronavirus. When it comes to infectious diseases like AIDS, malaria or now COVID-19, the WHO coordinates the international response. With the current pandemic, that means orchestrating research cooperation and the development of tests, medical treatments and vaccines.
On World Health Day, DW takes a look at everything the WHO does.
02:00 Here's the latest from the Americas:
Colombia President Ivan Duque announced the extension of a nationwide quarantine to stem the spread of coronavirus. Originally set to last 19 days, ending just before midnight on April 13, Colombia will remain on lockdown until April 27.
"This isolation - which seeks the best of all of us – is exactly so we can keep saving lives, breaking the exponential growth of this pandemic," Duque said during a live television broadcast.
Colombia closed borders, shuttered schools and shut down international passenger flights last month, as infections soared when travelers returning from Europe and the US brought the disease home.
Quarantine rules state that only one person per family is allowed out to shop for essential items or carry out financial transactions, masks are required in stores, banks and on public transport, and restaurants can operate on take-out only.
Latest figures: 1,579 infected, 46 deaths, 88 recovered
Panama The government of Panama has ordered the temporary closure of Minera Panama, one of Latin America's largest copper producers. The company is majority-owned by Toronto-based First Quantum Minerals.
The closure was due to an outbreak of coronavirus among the mine company's workers, health minister Rosario Turner said.
Panama has imposed a strict lockdown, shutting schools, closing borders and sharply restricting movement, to curb the spread of coronavirus.
Latest figures: 1,988 infected, 54 deaths, 13 recovered
Venezuela Hundreds of Venezuelan refugees in Colombia began returning home, due to the coronavirus pandemic that is griping the host country.
Colombian migration officials said 600 people, including 35 children and 167 women, had crossed the main border point at the Simon Bolivar International Bridge in the northeastern city of Cucuta, into Venezuela last weekend.
Although the border is officially closed, Colombia has established a "humanitarian corridor" to allow Venezuelans to return home.
Colombian police took the temperature of the departing refugees, to ensure they were free of infection and sprayed those wearing face masks with a disinfectant.
Latest figures: 159 infected, 7 deaths, 52 recovered
Brazil A report by the Brazilian army's strategic studies center contradicted President Jair Bolsonaro's stance on the coronavirus. The report urged for widespread isolation to fight the pandemic, fueling an already heated public debate within Bolsonaro's government.
The study calls for reinforcing social distancing measures to slow the virus' spread, defying the president's statements that have sought to minimize the risks of the disease and called for states to end lockdowns.
The report endorses widespread, or "horizontal," social distancing measures to avoid a sharp peak in infections. "Though too soon for a final evaluation, the early adoption of horizontal isolation strategies can be seen to lead to more effective results in flattening the curve," the report said.
The study also said the government will have to take on a major role in rebuilding Brazil's economy once the epidemic is over.
Meanwhile, Sao Paulo state, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in Latin America, said it expected 111,000 deaths in the next six months, and extended its stay-at-home measures for another two weeks.
Latest figures: 12,056 infected, 553 deaths, 127 recovered
Argentina Argentina has announced it will defer its payments of up to $9.8 billion on local public debt in response to the coronavirus crisis. The government decree postponed payments just as the government of President Alberto Fernandez was negotiating with creditors to restructure $68.8 billion in private foreign debt.
The government said that the global health crisis unleashed by the COVID-19 pandemic had "altered the deadlines anticipated" in the government's timetable for stabilizing its debt situation.
Prior to the coronavirus pandemic, Argentina had been battling a deep economic crisis since 2018, with more than 35 percent of Argentinians living in poverty.
Latest figures: 1,554 infected, 48 deaths, 325 recovered
01:15 For the first time since it started publishing figures in January, China's National Health Commission has reported no new deaths from coronavirus. The 32 new cases registered, all came from people who had returned from abroad.
00:45 A recent study has found that ferrets and cats can be infected with COVID-19, and can also pass the virus on to members of their species — under laboratory conditions. There is less risk with other domesticated animals.
00:25 Since 1971, aid group Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has been working around the world to help people affected by diseases, famines and natural disasters. DW examines why their commitment and experience are now needed at home — in Europe.
00:15 US President Donald Trump lashed out during his daily coronavirus briefing over a Health Department report that found US hospitals still had concerns about a shortage of testing supplies.
''It’s just wrong. It’s just wrong,'' Trump said, demanding to know who had written the report.
The inspector general (watchdog) report was based on interviews with more than 300 hospitals nationwide. The report also highlighted a scarcity of protective gear, shortage of ventilators for seriously ill patients and burned-out hospital staff, anxious for their own safety.
''We've had more testing and had more results than any country anywhere in the world. They're doing an incredible job,'' the president continued.
''So give me the name of the inspector general. Could politics be entered into that?''
00:01 The US now has more than 10,000 deaths from coronavirus as the country enters what Surgeon General Jerome M. Adams warned would be ''the hardest and saddest week of most Americans’ lives.''
Latest figures from Johns Hopkins University put the death toll at 10,524 with at least 362,759 cases of infection — the highest number in the world.
New York continues to be the epicenter of the outbreak, with nearly 4,000 deaths. But Governor Andrew Cuomo said the state could be experiencing a ''flattening of the curve,'' as some 599 new deaths were reported on Monday, on par with Sunday’s death count of 594 and down from 630 on Saturday.
00:00 German Chancellor Angela Merkel and US President Donald Trump are among those who have sent their best wishes to UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who is currently in intensive care in London suffering from coronavirus.
Catch up on that story and all Monday's coronavirus developments here: Coronavirus latest: Boris Johnson moves to intensive care
In reporting on the coronavirus pandemic, unless otherwise specified, DW uses figures provided by the Johns Hopkins University (JHU) Coronavirus Resource Center in the United States. JHU updates figures in real time, collating data from world health organizations, state and national governments and other public official sources, all of whom have their own systems for compiling information.
Germany's national statistics are compiled by its public health agency, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI). These figures depend on data transmission from state and local levels and are updated around once a day, which can lead to deviation from JHU.
jcg/rt (Reuters, dpa, AP, AFP)
