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Coronavirus live news: US-Canada border to close to non-essential traffic; worldwide cases pass 200,000 Coronavirus live news: Spain to close all hotels as tourists advised to leave; worldwide cases pass 200,000
(32 minutes later)
Belgium goes into lockdown; EU implements strictest travel ban in history; outbreak reaches every US state. Follow the latest updatesBelgium goes into lockdown; EU implements strictest travel ban in history; outbreak reaches every US state. Follow the latest updates
Concerned Guardian reader Clare Finnigan has pointed out this sad and worrying news in the UK, where a food bank has taken the “difficult decision” to close.
Trump has spoken about the key role played by Ireland in the pharmaceutical world as the world searches for coronavirus vaccines and treatments, adding that the US was “looking to bring a lot more back home,” writes my colleague Ben Quinn.
British tourists stranded in the Egyptian resort town of Hurghada are complaining that airline operator Easyjet has cancelled flights, not allowing them to return before Egypt shuts down international and domestic flights on Thursday noon.
The British Ambassador to Egypt, Sir Geoffrey Adams, said the embassy is working to respond to the issue:
Egypt now has 196 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including six deaths according to the country’s Ministry of Health.
Jean Jabbour, director of the World Health Organization in Cairo announced that Egypt has tested 3015 people. He was speaking at a digital press conference earlier today to discuss the spread of COVID-19 in the Middle East.
Dr Ahmed Al Mandhari, director of the WHO for the Eastern Meditarranean region said that 18,019 cases have been reported in 18 countries in the Eastern Mediterranean region, including 1010 deaths from 7 countries.
He added:
Nigeria has announced that it is restricting entry into the country for travellers from China, Italy, Iran, South Korea, Spain, Japan, France, Germany, Norway, U.S, the United Kingdom, Netherlands and Switzerland. On Wednesday the government confirmed the country had 8 confirmed cases of coronavirus.
There are concerns in some of the remotest parts of the world about the lack of coronavirus testing facilities.
In Greenland in the far north, and the Falklands in the far south, samples from patients suspected of contracting the virus, have to be flown thousands of miles away for confirmation.
Anders Madsen, a nurse from Nook, the capital of Greenland, emailed the Guardian on Monday to confirm the island’s first case. But in his latest update he pointed out that Greenland is still waiting for the test results from nine other patients to be analysed in Denmark which controls the island. Meanwhile, all schools in Greenland have been closed in line with Danish policy, he said.
Madsen added:
Madsen’s comments on Monday, prompted another reader from the Falkland Islands to report similar concerns.
The reader, who did not want to be named, said:
The reader said there was also alarm on the Falklands about the limited hospital capacity if coronavirus does hit. They said:
Interesting story in the New Yorker with relevance to the current pandemic:
A major animal disease research centre is set to move from an island off the US East Coast to Kansas, the American breadbasket, where a lab accident could destroy the $68 billion-a-year beef industry, journalist Elizabeth Eaves writes.
A shutdown of the United States-Canada border, barring allnon-essential travel, is likely to be met with strong approval inCanada, as health officials grapple with a surge in coronavirus casesoriginating in the United States, writes my colleague Leyland Cecco in Toronto.A shutdown of the United States-Canada border, barring allnon-essential travel, is likely to be met with strong approval inCanada, as health officials grapple with a surge in coronavirus casesoriginating in the United States, writes my colleague Leyland Cecco in Toronto.
When prime minister Justin Trudeau previously announced the closure of Canada’s border to international travellers earlier this week, he made a large exception: American citizens could still travel north.When prime minister Justin Trudeau previously announced the closure of Canada’s border to international travellers earlier this week, he made a large exception: American citizens could still travel north.
But a growing number of coronavirus cases has likely shifted the government’s calculations in recent days.“We have 32 new [cases] in the last 24 hours,” Dr. Barbara Yaffe, Ontario’s associate chief medical officer of health, said Monday. “And a significant number of those were exposed [to the virus] in the United States.”British Columbia’s health minister has been the most vocal of critic of Americans still having permission to travel into Canada. The westernmost province has been hit hard in recent days by a surge in cases, many of which are suspected of have originated in northern Washington state, one of the deadliest locations in the country for the virus.“It’s our strong view and it’s our strong message that visitors from the United States not come to British Columbia,” said minister Adrian Dix at a press conference Tuesday night, as health officials announced a surge in cases- and three more deaths. “Don’t come. Because at this moment that is the wrong thing to do.”But a growing number of coronavirus cases has likely shifted the government’s calculations in recent days.“We have 32 new [cases] in the last 24 hours,” Dr. Barbara Yaffe, Ontario’s associate chief medical officer of health, said Monday. “And a significant number of those were exposed [to the virus] in the United States.”British Columbia’s health minister has been the most vocal of critic of Americans still having permission to travel into Canada. The westernmost province has been hit hard in recent days by a surge in cases, many of which are suspected of have originated in northern Washington state, one of the deadliest locations in the country for the virus.“It’s our strong view and it’s our strong message that visitors from the United States not come to British Columbia,” said minister Adrian Dix at a press conference Tuesday night, as health officials announced a surge in cases- and three more deaths. “Don’t come. Because at this moment that is the wrong thing to do.”
US president Donald Trump has just tweeted that the US-Canada border will be closed to “non-essential traffic”. Trump insists: “trade will not be affected”.US president Donald Trump has just tweeted that the US-Canada border will be closed to “non-essential traffic”. Trump insists: “trade will not be affected”.
More details in our US-focused liveblog:More details in our US-focused liveblog:
Annual advertising industry jamboree the Cannes Lions festival has been postponed until October. A statement on the festival’s website says:Annual advertising industry jamboree the Cannes Lions festival has been postponed until October. A statement on the festival’s website says:
Even the most ghastly events normally have some minor, beneficial upside and now, alongside improved global air quality and the abolition of the BBC Question Time audience, we can add PMQs to the list of things made better by coronavirus. The tone was always going to serious and sombre given the nature of the crisis facing the country. (Every single question was about coronavirus, by my count.) But the effect of holding it in a near-empty chamber also made a difference because there was no cheering or barracking. Boris Johnson had no noise cushion to help him through. It meant that what he said mattered more.Even the most ghastly events normally have some minor, beneficial upside and now, alongside improved global air quality and the abolition of the BBC Question Time audience, we can add PMQs to the list of things made better by coronavirus. The tone was always going to serious and sombre given the nature of the crisis facing the country. (Every single question was about coronavirus, by my count.) But the effect of holding it in a near-empty chamber also made a difference because there was no cheering or barracking. Boris Johnson had no noise cushion to help him through. It meant that what he said mattered more.
Johnson was pressed repeatedly, especially by Jeremy Corbyn, by Ian Blackford and most effectively of all by Chris Byrant, on what he was doing to help workers who will lose out from coronavirus and he was on slightly shaky ground. Ministers insist they will announce a package of employment support measures very soon, and Johnson repeatedly insisted that people should not lose out for doing the right thing (ie, for staying at home, even if they feel well) and he repeatedly said that he was willing to do whatever it took. To some extent, that still sounded more like a slogan than a strategy.Johnson was pressed repeatedly, especially by Jeremy Corbyn, by Ian Blackford and most effectively of all by Chris Byrant, on what he was doing to help workers who will lose out from coronavirus and he was on slightly shaky ground. Ministers insist they will announce a package of employment support measures very soon, and Johnson repeatedly insisted that people should not lose out for doing the right thing (ie, for staying at home, even if they feel well) and he repeatedly said that he was willing to do whatever it took. To some extent, that still sounded more like a slogan than a strategy.
But PMQs should also been an opportunity for the prime minister to listen, as well as to communicate, and one would imagine than Johnson would have left the chamber more persuaded than ever about the need for some mass government intervention to protect workers. If Felicity Buchan, a Kensington Tory with a background in banking, is saying that the government does not need to worry about borrowing any more (see 12.29pm), then it is hard to see what is restraining No 10.But PMQs should also been an opportunity for the prime minister to listen, as well as to communicate, and one would imagine than Johnson would have left the chamber more persuaded than ever about the need for some mass government intervention to protect workers. If Felicity Buchan, a Kensington Tory with a background in banking, is saying that the government does not need to worry about borrowing any more (see 12.29pm), then it is hard to see what is restraining No 10.
Johnson has a proper announcement to make during the session. In response to a question from Corbyn, he confirmed that the government would legislate to protect renters from eviction during the coronavirus crisis. He told MPs:Johnson has a proper announcement to make during the session. In response to a question from Corbyn, he confirmed that the government would legislate to protect renters from eviction during the coronavirus crisis. He told MPs:
Johnson also announced that coronavirus testing was being ramped up to 25,000 tests a day. And, although he did not reveal what the government’s employment support measures would involve, his answers on this were intriguing. He did not dismiss out of hand the temporary universal basis income idea floated by Blackford, or Bryant’s call for a handout in the form of a summer version of the winter fuel payment.Johnson also announced that coronavirus testing was being ramped up to 25,000 tests a day. And, although he did not reveal what the government’s employment support measures would involve, his answers on this were intriguing. He did not dismiss out of hand the temporary universal basis income idea floated by Blackford, or Bryant’s call for a handout in the form of a summer version of the winter fuel payment.
Johnson was also interesting on the subject of schools. He told MPs:Johnson was also interesting on the subject of schools. He told MPs:
That sounded very much like a hint that the government will announce a partial closure of schools, with some provision being kept open - perhaps for children of key workers, or perhaps with schools in childminding rather than education mode? - to minimise the impact on the NHS.That sounded very much like a hint that the government will announce a partial closure of schools, with some provision being kept open - perhaps for children of key workers, or perhaps with schools in childminding rather than education mode? - to minimise the impact on the NHS.
Keep with more detailed live news from the UK here.Keep with more detailed live news from the UK here.
British tourists in Spain who are looking to return to the UK should make travel arrangements as soon as possible, the British ambassador to Spain has said, as all hotels in the country have been ordered to close down within a week, writes my colleague Ashifa Kassam in Madrid.British tourists in Spain who are looking to return to the UK should make travel arrangements as soon as possible, the British ambassador to Spain has said, as all hotels in the country have been ordered to close down within a week, writes my colleague Ashifa Kassam in Madrid.
“Our advice is now that British tourists in Spain who wish to return home should make travel plans to do so as soon as possible,” Hugh Elliott said in a video posted online on Tuesday evening.“Our advice is now that British tourists in Spain who wish to return home should make travel plans to do so as soon as possible,” Hugh Elliott said in a video posted online on Tuesday evening.
He continued: “The government has ordered the closure of hotels over the next seven days in order to reduce risks to health.” As hotels begin shuttering, some tourists will be asked to move hotels, he noted.He continued: “The government has ordered the closure of hotels over the next seven days in order to reduce risks to health.” As hotels begin shuttering, some tourists will be asked to move hotels, he noted.
The embassy is in close contact with Spanish authorities, who have made it clear that “no one will be left without accommodation,” said Elliott. He urged tourists and residents in Spain to check the government’s site for up-to-date travel advice.The embassy is in close contact with Spanish authorities, who have made it clear that “no one will be left without accommodation,” said Elliott. He urged tourists and residents in Spain to check the government’s site for up-to-date travel advice.
The ambassador’s advice comes after the Spanish government said this week that it had not ruled out closing the country’s airspace.The ambassador’s advice comes after the Spanish government said this week that it had not ruled out closing the country’s airspace.
Nearly 600 people have died in Spain in recent weeks and cases of coronavirus have surged to 13,716, leaving the country battling an epidemic that ranks among the worst in Europe.Nearly 600 people have died in Spain in recent weeks and cases of coronavirus have surged to 13,716, leaving the country battling an epidemic that ranks among the worst in Europe.
As pressure builds on the country’s healthcare system, Spanish authorities said they were considering turning now-vacant hotels into makeshift hospitals. The first such transformation, described by local media as a “medicalised hotel,” is expected to begin operating this week, after a four-star hotel in central Madrid offered up its 361 rooms to authorities.As pressure builds on the country’s healthcare system, Spanish authorities said they were considering turning now-vacant hotels into makeshift hospitals. The first such transformation, described by local media as a “medicalised hotel,” is expected to begin operating this week, after a four-star hotel in central Madrid offered up its 361 rooms to authorities.
Elliott also reminded British tourists and residents to continue to comply with Spain’s near-total lockdown, amid videos making the rounds on social media that show some tourists flaunting the new rules. Earlier in the week, as the measures went into effect, Spanish media published a video showing holidaymakers wandering leisurely through Benidorm. “It’s a flu that we just all need to get over,” one tourist told news agency Atlas. “Have a beer,” he added, waving around the open beer can he was carrying.Elliott also reminded British tourists and residents to continue to comply with Spain’s near-total lockdown, amid videos making the rounds on social media that show some tourists flaunting the new rules. Earlier in the week, as the measures went into effect, Spanish media published a video showing holidaymakers wandering leisurely through Benidorm. “It’s a flu that we just all need to get over,” one tourist told news agency Atlas. “Have a beer,” he added, waving around the open beer can he was carrying.
The 2020 Eurovision Song Contest has become the latest high profile cultural event to be hit by the coronavirus pandemic, with the annual songwriting competition delayed until 2021. Due to be held in Rotterdam on 16 May, the event will now take place 12 months later in the same venue.The 2020 Eurovision Song Contest has become the latest high profile cultural event to be hit by the coronavirus pandemic, with the annual songwriting competition delayed until 2021. Due to be held in Rotterdam on 16 May, the event will now take place 12 months later in the same venue.
Full story here:Full story here:
Also, if you need cheering up (and frankly, who doesn’t right now), give the Icelandic entry a watch. As our very own Jay Rayner states: “if this hadn’t won there would be no justice”.Also, if you need cheering up (and frankly, who doesn’t right now), give the Icelandic entry a watch. As our very own Jay Rayner states: “if this hadn’t won there would be no justice”.
There’s even a petition to give it to Iceland, by default.There’s even a petition to give it to Iceland, by default.
Breaking: Nicola Sturgeon announces schools and nurseries in Scotland will close to pupils at the end of the week.Breaking: Nicola Sturgeon announces schools and nurseries in Scotland will close to pupils at the end of the week.
The first minister said there will be further announcements to support low income students on free school meals as well as students who have exams.The first minister said there will be further announcements to support low income students on free school meals as well as students who have exams.
Sturgeon added that people should not assume schools and nurseries will reopen after the Easter break. She cannot promise it will reopen before summer holidays.Sturgeon added that people should not assume schools and nurseries will reopen after the Easter break. She cannot promise it will reopen before summer holidays.
She said: “It will not be easy, but together we will get through this.”She said: “It will not be easy, but together we will get through this.”
A person has died from coronavirus in Burkina Faso, the first known death from the disease in sub-Saharan Africa, writes the Guardian’s international correspondent Michael Safi.
The country, where security has been deteriorating for months due to attacks by armed groups including some linked to Islamic State and Al-Qaeda, has emerged as a hotspot in Africa, with 27 confirmed cases and at least 200 more people suspected of having the disease.
South Africa has the most cases in the region with 116 as of this morning, a 31% jump on yesterday’s figures.
The Burkina Faso government has closed schools and universities and banned public gatherings but is said to be enforcing the laws in a piecemeal way, raising fears the infection could spread
The wearing of masks has been made compulsory in Prague, by order of local authorities.
The measure, which comes into effect today from 6pm local time, comes after authorities had said that masks would also be required in all indoor spaces such as shops and offices. A fine of up to 20,000 CZ has been set.
In Denmark, a simple but seemingly effective step is being employed in at least one retailer
Facebook has banned the sale of medical masks on its Marketplace platform, but the Guardian has found evidence of how users are selling them in closed groups to get around the ban.
We found at least five groups, some of which have thousands of members, where people posted offers to buy and sell masks. Some of these groups appear to be targeted specifically at UK users and have members whose Facebook location is in the UK.
It is not clear what price the masks are selling for as vendors mostly appear to be arranging sales via Facebook Messenger or Whatsapp. The groups also show posts offering hand sanitiser and thermometers for sale.
As the pandemic worsens there is a serious global shortage of medical masks. Facebook announced it would ban users selling masks on its Marketplace or placing ads featuring masks, in an attempt to stop price gouging.
Amazon and Ebay have also restricted the sale of masks, though earlier this week the Guardian found other household items selling at hugely inflated prices on Ebay.
Facebook has been contacted for comment.
A general ban on group gatherings will be announced within the day in Greece.
Speaking to Alpha TV earlier, the government spokesman, Stelios Petsas, who is self-isolating as his wife has contracted coronavirus, signalled a cap of ten was likely to be placed on groups meeting in public spaces such as parks and squares.
“Today we will take another step and proceed with a ban on gatherings above a certain number … unfortunately, and I say this with regret, the recommendation that we should all stay at home while upheld by a large part of the population is still not followed by all, and that is very dangerous.”
When put to him that experts were saying it was good to be out in the sun, Petsas clarified it wasn’t “a problem” for one or two people to take a stroll “and on the contrary helps them psychologically and helps them deal with this period of self-isolation.”
But what had been witnessed in recent days of people converging on the beach and in public spaces in cities nationwide was unacceptable, he told the channel.
The government has repeatedly said that those caught flouting regulations will be punished.
Greece was among the first EU states to prohibit mass public events but has yet to announce a full lockdown that would include a curfew on the streets. Petsas that “at this point” it was not considering one.
With cafes and eateries closed, young Greeks, in particular, have taken to hanging out in squares and the few green spaces that exist in central Athens.
Sites around the capital’s world-renowned antiquities have become popular – even if they, too, are closed. So far, Greek health authorities have announced 387 confirmed cases of coronavirus. There have been five reported deaths as a result of covid-19.
Turkey’s President Tayyip Erdogan has said the coronavirus outbreak was hitting Turkey just as it was recovering from a 2018 lira crisis but that there would be “big opportunities” if it could bring the outbreak under control in the coming weeks.
Turkey confirmed its first death related to the coronavirus on Tuesday and a doubling of its confirmed cases in one day to 98 after it ramped up measures to combat the spread of the virus.
“It is not easy to keep all the wheels of the economy turning while battling coronavirus,” Reuters reported Erdogan as saying at the start of a meeting he was chairing with ministers, bankers and business leaders to discuss dealing with the pandemic.
“If we can manage these few weeks well and inform the nation well and keep the virus under control, we anticipate a good outlook, better than we had hoped,” he said.
“We can see that greater opportunities await us when we get out of this period with success.”
Dutch plans to press ahead with a controversial ‘herd immunity’ strategy against the coronavirus outbreak continued to face criticism today as parliamentarians debated an approach which the Netherlands appears to be alone in pursuing.
In a speech to the nation on Monday, Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte said that the Netherlands would aim to develop immunity to coronavirus among its population by allowing large numbers to contract the illness at a controlled pace
“Those who have had the virus are usually immune afterwards. Just like in the old days with measles. The larger the group that is immune, the less chance that the virus will jump to vulnerable elderly people and people with poor health. With group immunity you build, as it were, a protective wall around them,” said Rutte.
The debate by members of the Dutch House of Representatives can be viewed live here on the Netherlands public broadcaster, NOS.
But while Rutte insisted on Tuesday that the strategy of his country - which has banned public gatherings and taken other measures - differed little from that of other states some Dutch people have been left to wonder if had become “the guineapigs of Europe.”
The British government announced last week that it would be banning mass gatherings after prime minister Boris Johnson’s cautious approach to the coronavirus outbreak was overtaken by care homes, sporting bodies and others. That came after the UK government’s chief scientific adviser, Sir Patrick Vallance, had last week defended its initial approach to coronavirus, saying it was aimed at creating a “herd immunity.”
Amid a continued debate in the Netherlands, some insisted that the strategy of ‘herd immunity’ was a side effect rather than the main goal, which was to mirror that of other states in attempting to use social distancing and other measures to ‘flatten the curve’ of the likely peak of the outbreak.
A Dutch microbiologist, Marc Bonten of UMC Utrecht, told De Telegraaf newspaper that even countries opting for a total lockdown would have to work on building group immunity.
But critics including the London-based economist Jerome Roos pointed to what they estimated the resulting death rate would be, as well as arguing that countries going for ‘herd immunity’ would make it impossible for the countries trying to completely stamp out the virus through collective quarantines
Roos told the Guardian that the Dutch approach does not mimic the one Boris Johnson’s government in the UK just backtracked on - adding that there was a lot of “epidemic suppression” going on in the Netherlands already with school closures and other developments - so it didn’t make a lot of sense for Rutte to invoke the concept of herd immunity in his address to the nation.
This is Ben Quinn picking up the blog now from Lexy Topping as she takes a break.
The number of coronavirus cases around the world has tipped over the 200,000 mark, according to the John Hopkins University global dashboard.
Belgium is the latest country to go into lockdown, with citizens asked to stay at home and limit contact to their closest family.
Coronavirus cases in France increase by 1,097 in 24 hours
Iran reported its single biggest jump in deaths from the new coronavirus on Wednesday, saying that a further 147 had died in a nearly 15% spike that raises the death toll to 1,135 people nationwide.
Glastonbury’s 50th anniversary celebrations will not go ahead this year in the UK, after organisers announced they would be cancelling because of coronavirus fears.
Two UN agencies have announced that refugees will no longer be resettled to homes in safe countries, as the world battles the Covid-19 crisis.
The Qantas Group has announced it is slashing international capacity by 90% and domestic capacity by 60% until the end of May.
Ireland’s taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, has won praise for a national address on Tuesday night that made grim predictions and called for sacrifice, responsibility and solidarity.
Burkina Faso has announced its first death from coronavirus, which is also the first known fatality in sub-Saharan Africa.
Bangladesh has reported its first death from coronavirus.
Iran reported its single biggest jump in deaths from the new coronavirus on Wednesday, saying that another 147 had died in a nearly 15% spike that raises the death toll to 1,135 people nationwide, the Associated Press reports:
The number of coronavirus cases around the world has tipped over the 200,000 mark, according to the John Hopkins University global dashboard.