Despite severe quarantine measures, Italy and Spain remain the most affected countries in Europe, while the United Kingdom has surpassed them in terms of fatalities (over 30,000), also reaching the 200,000-infected mark. Germany, France, and Russia have also registered a surge in those diagnosed with the virus, but Moscow and Berlin have managed to keep death rates at a relatively low level.
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MEXICO CITY (Sputnik) – The number of people, who have died of COVID-19 in Mexico, has risen by 257 to 2,961 within the past 24 hours, the Ministry of Health said.
The ministry's director of epidemiology, Jose Luis Alomia, also said on late Thursday that the number of confirmed coronavirus cases had increased by 1,982 to 29,616 within the same period of time.
A day earlier, the Latin American nation has recorded 1,609 new confirmed cases of the coronavirus, with 197 lethal ones.
SEOUL (Sputnik) – The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in South Korea has risen by 12 to 10,822 over the past day, the Health Ministry's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said on Friday.
The death toll has not changed and stands at 256 people. The number of recovered people has reached 9,484.
The country has conducted more than 635,000 coronavirus tests, with the results of 8,867 tests being processed now.
A day earlier, South Korea registered four new cases of COVID-19 and one fatality.
BEIJING (Sputnik) – China has registered one new case of COVID-19 within the past 24 hours, with no people having died of the disease, the National Health Commission said on Friday.
The only new coronavirus case was detected in the province of Jilin. The authorities also recorded 16 new asymptomatic cases, according to the commission.
“The National Health Commission received information about 82,886 confirmed cases of pneumonia caused by a new type of coronavirus from 31 provinces [regions and municipalities], including 260 currently ill people. 18 people are in critical condition, 4,633 have died, 77,993 people have been discharged from hospitals,” the commission said in a statement.
The number of confirmed cases in Hong Kong stands at 1,044 people, with four patients having died and 944 more having been discharged from hospitals. Forty-five people have been infected with the disease in Macao, with 40 of them having been released from medical facilities. The number of infected people in Taiwan amounts to 439, with six of them having died and 347 others recovered.
BUENOS AIRES (Sputnik) – Argentina has confirmed 163 new cases of the coronavirus across the country within the past 24 hours, with the total number of people infected with COVID-19 having reached 5,371, the national Ministry of Health said.
A day earlier, Argentina recorded 188 new cases of the coronavirus disease and nine fatalities.
"Today, 163 new cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed, bringing the total number of [COVID-19] positive tests in the country to 5,371," the ministry said in a daily bulletin on late Thursday.
The death toll has increased by nine to 282 people within the same period of time.
The mortality rate in the Latin American country currently stands at 5.2 percent.
RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (Sputnik) – The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Brazil has increased by 9,888 to 135,106 within the past 24 hours, the National Ministry of Health said on late Thursday.
The death toll has risen by 610 to 9,146 people within the same period of time.
A day earlier, Brazil reported about 10,503 new cases of the coronavirus disease and 615 new fatalities.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The Moscow Region decided to prolong the self-isolation regime because of the COVID-19 pandemic until 31 May, a decree of regional Governor Andrey Vorobyov said.
A similar decision was made on Thursday by Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin.
"From March 26, 2020, to May 31, 2020 (inclusive): the self-isolation regime must be respected by the citizens aged over 65 years as well as by people with illnesses that are included in the Annex One," the governor's decree said on late Thursday.
The regional authorities also banned public and sports events, activities of car-sharing companies, bars, restaurants, cafes, and other public catering facilities until May 31. Beauty salons, solariums, and saunas will also be closed until the same date.
WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - Up to 190,000 Africans could die from the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) this year if containment measures prove inadequate, the World Health Organization (WHO) said in a report.
"Eighty-three thousand to 190,000 people in Africa could die of COVID-19 and 29 million to 44 million could get infected in the first year of the pandemic if containment measures fail, a new study by the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Africa finds," a press release summarizing the report said on Thursday.
The report is based on prediction modeling that includes variables specific to each of 47 countries, the release said.
"While COVID-19 likely won’t spread as exponentially in Africa as it has elsewhere in the world, it likely will smoulder in transmission hotspots," WHO Regional Director for Africa Matshidiso Moeti said in the release.
Moeti pointed out that COVID-19 could become a fixture in daily life for the next several years unless a proactive approach is taken by many governments in the region.
We need to test, trace, isolate and treat," Moeti said.
The release cited a March 2020 survey of 47 nations indicating an average of nine intensive care unit beds per 1 million people, which the report characterized as "woefully inadequate."
In addition, physical access to healthcare in the general population is relatively low, according to the report.
NEW DELHI (Sputnik) - The Indian government is working on a stimulus package for the country's entire economy amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Giridhar Aramane, the secretary in the ministry of road transport, said on Thursday.
In April, several rating agencies and analytics services predicted a drop in India 's GDP over the disruption of trade networks by COVID-19.
"Government of India, Prime Minister's Office and the department of economic affairs are already working on a package, which includes not only the MSME but also the entire industry. All sectors of the economy being taken care of by a comprehensive package, being worked out in the government," he said as quoted by the Times of India newspaper.
India has confirmed 52,952 cases with the death toll standing at 1,783.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus disease worldwide has surpassed 3.8 million, while the death toll has exceeded 267,000, according to the latest data provided by Johns Hopkins University.
By 19:50 GMT there were 3,815,561 confirmed coronavirus cases in the world. The global death toll from COVID-19 stood at 267,469. The number of recoveries was 1,266,479.
The United States remains the worst hit the country with the highest number of cases — 1,245,622 — and the highest COVID-19 death toll — 75,054.
WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he offered during a recent telephone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin to send ventilators to Russia.
"I suggested if they need, because we have a lot of ventilators, if they need ventilators, we'd love to send them some and we will do that at the appropriate time," Trump said.
The United States has planned to send ventilators to other countries, including the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, Nigeria, El Salvador, Ecuador and Mexico, among others.
Last month, Trump said the US federal government has stockpiled about 10,000 ventilators.
"Another 51 patients, who were diagnosed with pneumonia and tested positive for the coronavirus infection, died in Moscow", the city's coronavirus response centre said in a statement on Thursday.
The number of COVID-19 fatalities was 39 a day ago, and so the city's coronavirus death toll increased for the first time in the past three days.
WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - An additional 67 US military service members have contracted the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), bringing the total to 5,086, the Defence Department said in a press release on Thursday.
The Defence Department said 113 service members have been hospitalized and 1,913 have recovered from the viral infection.
The Defence Department also reported 2,616 COVID-19 cases among its civilian employees, adding that 144 of them have been hospitalized and 1,148 others have recovered.
No new COVID-19-related fatalities have been reported and the totals stand at 27.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - A total 1,540 Russian service members have tested positive for the new coronavirus since the start of the outbreak, 34 in the past day, the Defence Ministry said Thursday.
"Blanket testing ... between March and May 7 of this year returned 1,540 positive results", the ministry said in a daily bulletin.
It said 376 service members were in military hospitals, 612 in health care facilities at their places of service, 14 in civilian health care institutions and 538 were being treated at home. A total of 221 have recovered.
Further 1,205 cadets and personnel have tested positive while in training at higher military educational institutions. Of them, 416 are receiving treatment in military hospitals, 652 are isolated at the places of service, 35 are in civilian health care institutions, 102 are being treated at home, and 272 have recovered.
"8,600 total hospitalisations. This number is down, that is good news. That is a fairly significant drop... [The number of] intubations is down. That’s good news. The three-day rolling average of hospitalizations is also down", Governor Andrew Cuomo told reporters.
"We are on the downside of the mountain. Downside of the mountain is a much more gentle slope than what we went through going up the mountain. We wish it was a steeper decline, but it’s not", Cuomo said.
On Wednesday, New York reported 231 deaths, including 191 in hospitals and 40 in nursing homes, compared to 232 on Monday and 299 on 1 May.
"You can see how slow that has come down and how painfully high it still is", Cuomo said.
ANKARA (Sputnik) - The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Turkey has increased by almost 2,000 in the last 24 hours, bringing the total to over 133,000, while the death toll increased by 57 to 3,641, country's Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said on Thursday, adding that this was the lowest daily number of fatalities since 1 April.
"Today, 1,977 new cases have been identified, with a total of 133,721 infected. We have lost 57 patients today, 3,641 in total", Koca wrote on Twitter.
He added that 4,782 patients recovered over the past day, and the total count of recoveries was now 82,984.
The UK's British Airways may resume some flights starting July, depending on the relaxation of measures introduced in a bid to curb the coronavirus pandemic in the country, CEO of the International Airlines Group, which owns British Airways, Willie Walsh said on Thursday.
"We are planning for a meaningful return to service in July 2020 at the earliest, depending on the easing of lockdowns and travel restrictions around the world. We will adapt our operating procedures to ensure our customers and our people are properly protected in this new environment. We are working with the various regulatory bodies and are confident that changes in regulations will enable a safe and organised return to service," Walsh said, as quoted in the IAG's press release.
At the same time, the CEO added that the group did not expect passenger demand to recover to the level of 2019 before 2023 at the earliest.
Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu held a phone conversation with his Italian counterpart, Lorenzo Guerini, who thanked Russia for timely help with the coronavirus response, the Russian Defence Ministry said Thursday in a statement.
Guerini remarked on the professionalism and bravery of the military medical personnel and the nuclear, biological and chemical protection troops, who helped Italy.
Shoigu told Guerini about the measures taken in the Russian Armed Forces to avoid the spread of the infection. Guerini said Italy was ready to provide medical help if necessary.
Saudi Arabia has registered 1,793 more coronavirus cases, taking the total of those infected to 33,731, a spokesman of the country’s Health Ministry said on Thursday, adding that the death toll has reached 219.
"[The ministry] has confirmed 1,793 new coronavirus cases, which brings the total in the kingdom to 33,731," Mohammed al-Abd al-Ali said at a press conference, adding that 25,741 of these cases were active.
The spokesman said that 145 patients were in critical condition, and the death toll has risen by 10 to 219.
According to the ministry, the tally of recoveries has increased by 1,015 to 7,798.
The Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) have invested more than 500 million rubles ($6.7 million) in the joint production of Evotech Mirai Genomics (EMG) COVID-19 diagnostics systems, RDIF CEO Kirill Dmitriev said on Thursday.
"In anticipation of talks between [Russian] President Vladimir Putin and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, our Japanese partner JBIC decided together with RDIF to invest over 500 million rubles in the production of Russian-Japanese test systems EMG ... through a joint Russian-Japanese investment fund. RDIF and JBIC are working on new initiatives and investments in the fight against coronavirus, which will be announced in the near future as wished by leaders of our countries," Dmitriev said.
The partnership between Russia and Japan, countries with unique technologies to combat the deadly diseases from testing to vaccine production, is strategically important for defeating the coronavirus, the RDIF head added.
The Finnish authorities have decided to extend the border controls introduced in a bid to curb the spread of the coronavirus until June 14, the country's Interior Ministry said in a statement on Thursday.
"The government decided on May 7 to maintain the temporary restrictions on border traffic until June 14, 2020. The decision is a continuation of the government’s decree of March 19," the ministry said.
At the same time, starting May 14, the authorities will allow movement across borders with other EU countries, in particular, commute to work, visits to relatives and other necessary trips.
Internal border controls will be continued at land borders, ports and airports in Finland.
So far, Finland has confirmed more than 5,600 cases of the coronavirus, including 255 fatalities.
The number of coronavirus cases in Switzerland has increased by 66 to 30,126, while the number of fatalities went up by 13 to 1,518, the Federal Office for Public Health said Thursday in a daily update.
According to the agency, nearly 300,000 coronavirus tests have been conducted in the country, with a 12 percent rate of positive cases.
The country began to lift coronavirus restriction measures late April with a gradual return to business of hairdressers and dentists’ offices. The second phase of restrictions easing is scheduled for May 11, when all shops, restaurants and bars will reopen with some restrictions.
"In the week ending May 2, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 3,169,000", the department said in a statement. It had previously released data showing 30 million Americans had filed for first-time unemployment benefits in the six previous weeks as most non-essential businesses in the United States were shuttered to limit the impact of the virus.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russian President Vladimir Putin and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe have held a phone conversation to discuss the COVID-19 pandemic, including cooperation on joint development of medications as well as on trade and the economy, the Kremlin said on Thursday.
"They have discussed the situation around the coronavirus pandemic. The Russian president and the Japanese prime minister have briefed each other on the measures implemented to contain the spread of the infection. They have confirmed plans to expand profile health agencies cooperation, including on joint development of medications", the Kremlin said in a statement, adding that the conversation was held at Japan's initiative.
"They have touched upon other pressing matters related to Russian-Japanese cooperation, including on trade and the economy", the statement read on.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Europe has registered 45 percent of the total number of global COVID-19 cases and the region accounts for 60 percent of worldwide deaths resulting from complications due to the disease, the World Health Organisation’s Regional Director for Europe Hans Henri P. Kluge said on Thursday.
"With a total of 1.6 million cases and almost 150,000 deaths, the European region accounts for 45 percent of cases and 60 percent of global deaths associated with COVID-19”, Kluge said during a virtual press briefing.
He added that while the daily increase in positive tests for COVID-19 in the European region as a whole has declined since 12 April, the WHO is concerned by the continued rise of cases in the eastern part of the region.
"The situation in the eastern part of the region remains a concern, Belarus, Kazakhstan, the Russian Federation, and Ukraine have seen increases in new cases over the past week", Kluge said.
Since the start of the outbreak, the WHO’s Regional Office in Europe has conducted more than 60 missions to help countries contain the outbreak. Most recently, WHO personnel arrived in Tajikistan to provide assistance, Kluge remarked.
Spain, Italy, and the United Kingdom have registered over 39 percent of the total number of COVID-19 cases reported in the European region since the start of the outbreak, according to figures published by the organisation.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Protective masks and gloves will become obligatory on public transport in Moscow after some other restrictions linked to the coronavirus have been relaxed, the Russian capital's mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, said Thursday.
The mayor on Wednesday announced that the capital would reopen all manufacturing and construction sites on 12 May.
"While offering a lot of people an opportunity to work, we understand that there will be more commute on transport, there will be more people in contact with one another, this needs to be compensated, at least to some extent. This is why we’re introducing an additional self-isolation rule on the subway, stricter rules on the mandatory wearing of masks and gloves on public transport", Sobyanin said on the Rossiya 24 broadcaster.
WARSAW (Sputnik) - The lower house of the Polish parliament, the Sejm, has overridden the upper house's veto and has passed legislation enabling the upcoming presidential election to be held exclusively through postal voting due to the coronavirus pandemic, a Sputnik correspondent reported on Thursday.
Earlier this week, the upper house of the Polish parliament, the Senate, vetoed the bill, previously approved by the Sejm. Since the veto has been overridden, the legislation is now to be passed to President Andrzej Duda for signing.
As Duda's term expires in the summer, the first round of the presidential election is to be held in the spring, no later than 23 May under the Polish Constitution. The exact date has not been determined yet.
MOSCOW, May 7 (Sputnik) - Russia has registered a record 11,231 new coronavirus cases over the past 24 hours (10,559 yesterday), bringing the total to 177,160, the national coronavirus response centre said on Thursday.
"Over the past 24 hours, 11,231 COVID-19 cases have been registered in 84 regions. Of these, 5,471 (or 48.7 percent) have been detected with people showing no clinical symptoms", the centre said in a statement.
This brings the total tally to 177,160 (+6.8 percent) in 85 regions across Russia.
Of the new cases, 6,703 were registered in Moscow (which is a new record for the city), 842 in the Moscow Region, and 312 in the Niznhy Novgorod Region (compared to yesterday's 5,858, 829, and 272, respectively).
NEW DELHI (Sputnik) - The number of confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in India has risen by 3,561 over the past 24 hours to 52,952, according to the country's Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
The ministry said the death toll had increased by 89 over the past day to 1,783.
The active case tally stands at 35,902. A total of 15,267 people have recovered (1,084 over the past day).
We support professional exchanges on #COVID19 between scientists & oppose groundless accusations. One should not accuse #China first & then run so-called international investigations just to make up the evidence. This is arbitrary investigation based on the presumption of guilt.
— Ji Rong (@ChinaSpox_India) May 7, 2020
The first of more than 60 flights repatriating thousands of Indians stranded overseas is due to set off on Thursday evening. Nearly 15,000 citizens are expected to return on special Air India flights from 12 countries over the next week.
With Lord Buddha’s message of compassion at heart, today, India launches one of its biggest evacuation missions #VandeBharatMission #SamudraSetu to bring back its citizens stranded abroad. #BuddhaPurnima wishes to all and welcome home! @narendramodi @DrSJaishankar @MEAIndia pic.twitter.com/tcvmjBF70A
— V. Muraleedharan (@MOS_MEA) May 7, 2020
MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Germany has confirmed 1,284 new COVID-19 cases over the past 24 hours, with the total count reaching 166,091, the Robert Koch Institute said on Thursday.
The death toll grew by 123 to 7,119 people within the same time period.
A day earlier, the country confirmed 947 new cases and 165 fatalities.
More than 139,000 COVID-19 patients have recovered in Germany since the beginning of the outbreak.
