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Coronavirus live news: China's Wuhan city reopens as Boris Johnson spends second night in intensive care Coronavirus live news: China's Wuhan city reopens as Boris Johnson spends second night in intensive care
(32 minutes later)
Scientists predict UK will be worst-hit country in Europe; Trump threatens to stop WHO funding; Global cases pass 1.4 millionScientists predict UK will be worst-hit country in Europe; Trump threatens to stop WHO funding; Global cases pass 1.4 million
If further evidence were needed there are more signs this morning of coronavirus hitting the most vulnerable – in this case refugees.
Greece’s alternate minister for migration, Giorgos Koumoutsakos, says new asylum requests will not be examined until the asylum service and its officers – who must meet applicants in person – can operate again. The news will be a blow for the thousands trapped in camps often forced to wait years for asylum applications to be processed.
But speaking to Thema 104,6 radio Wednesday, Koumoutsakos said migrants and refugees would “have the right to submit requests.”
And he sought to clear up confusion over the estimated 2,000 people who had slipped into Greece from Turkey after March 1st when Athens suspended asylum applications in response to Ankara announcing it was relaxing controls and opening the gates to Europe. “They will be judged on a personal basis, and quickly, and so very soon we will know who among them is in need of international protection and who is not and can be returned back [to their countries].”
Greek authorities were forced over the weekend to place a second migrant facility outside Athens in quarantine because of coronavirus fears.
The two camps – in Ritsona and Malakassa – will be sealed off for two weeks. Police reinforcements have been dispatched to enforce the lockdown, patrolling the periphery of both around-the-clock. The move came after testing revealed infections in the installations.
Those now diagnosed with the potentially deadly disease have been isolated in both sites, among 30 on the Greek mainland. The development has raised concerns for the 36,000 men, women and children living in vastly overcrowded camps on Aegean islands facing the Turkish coast where social distancing and other precautionary measures in the age of the novel virus are an impossible privilege.
By Tuesday evening a total of 1,832 coronavirus cases had been confirmed in Greece with authorities announcing that 81 people had died of Covid-19.
Italy has closed its ports to migrant shops because of the coronavirus epidemic.
The government ruled on Tuesday evening that ports cannot be considered safe and will not let charity migrant boats dock.
The decision was taken after German non-profit organisation Sea-Eye headed towards Italy after picking up some 150 people off Libya in one of its ships.
“For the entire duration of the national health emergency caused by the spread of the COVID-19 virus, Italian ports cannot guarantee the requisites needed to be classified and defined as a place of safety,” the decree said.
Although the national emergency is set to end on July 31, the deadline could be extended.
While the UK prime minister Boris Johnson is in hospital with coronavirus symptoms, the foreign secretary Dominic Raab is deputising.
Our political correspondent Peter Walker looks into what this actually means and what powers Raab will have in this explainer:
Irish police are to increase checkpoints and patrols this weekend to deter Easter travel, hardening what has until now been a soft application of lockdown in Ireland.
The minister for health, Simon Harris, on Tuesday night signed regulations giving gardaí new powers to restrict people’s movements and gatherings over the next five days. Penalties for violations include fines of up to €2,500 and up to six months in prison.
A person cannot leave home without a reasonable excuse, including legal, medical and family obligations, accessing essential services, and exercising within 2km of home. Gardai are expected to be especially vigilant at parks and beauty spots.
Restrictions on social and commercial life are due to expire on Sunday but authorities have signalled they will be extended.
Donald Trump has criticised the World Health Organization (WHO), and by implication Beijing, saying the global body is “China centric” and “biased” towards the rival superpower.
As Wuhan, the city at the centre of the outbreak, began to return to normal life, Trump said the WHO had “been wrong about a lot of things”, and threatened to put a hold on WHO funding. When asked if that was a good idea during a pandemic, Trump denied saying it, and then said they would “look at it”.
You can read the full report by Guardian Australia reporter Helen Davidson here:
India’s financial hub Mumbai is set to extend lockdown measures until at least 30 April, officials have said.
A three week nationwide lockdown imposed by prime minister Narendra Modi is officially set to end next Tuesday.
But in Mumbai, authorities are racing to expand testing to slow down the spread of coronavirus cases.
The city, which has a population of more than 20 million, has become India’s virus epicentre.
On Wednesday, the latest health bulletin reported 782 positive cases and 50 deaths.
“In Mumbai cases are rising too fast. In just 24 hours 100 cases were reported on Tuesday,” said one of three senior officials who spoke to Reuters.
He added that an extension of current measures for at least another two weeks was necessary to stop Covid-19 from spreading in one of the world’s most populated cities.
Yesterday, our south Asia correspondent Hannah Ellis-Peterson and freelance journalist Shaikh Azizur Rahman wrote about the scramble to contain the virus in one of Mumbai’s slums.
A midnight light show lit up the sky in Wuhan as the former centre of the coronavirus outbreak celebrated its ‘reopening’.A midnight light show lit up the sky in Wuhan as the former centre of the coronavirus outbreak celebrated its ‘reopening’.
On Wednesday, the Chinese city began lifting outbound travel restrictions after nearly 11 weeks of lockdown.On Wednesday, the Chinese city began lifting outbound travel restrictions after nearly 11 weeks of lockdown.
Skyscrapers and bridges across the Yangtze river radiated with images of health workers, troops, police officers and other key workers.Skyscrapers and bridges across the Yangtze river radiated with images of health workers, troops, police officers and other key workers.
The UK is nowhere near ready to lift the lockdown measures it put in place to tackle the spread of Covid-19, London’s mayor Sadiq Khan has said.The UK is nowhere near ready to lift the lockdown measures it put in place to tackle the spread of Covid-19, London’s mayor Sadiq Khan has said.
Prime minister Boris Johnson, who is currently in intensive care after his coronavirus symptoms worsened, imposed the measures on March 23, saying that they would be reviewed after three weeks.Prime minister Boris Johnson, who is currently in intensive care after his coronavirus symptoms worsened, imposed the measures on March 23, saying that they would be reviewed after three weeks.
With the date approaching, Khan told the BBC on Wednesday: “I think we are nowhere near lifting the lockdown.With the date approaching, Khan told the BBC on Wednesday: “I think we are nowhere near lifting the lockdown.
“We think the peak, which is the worst part of the virus, is still probably a week and a half away.”“We think the peak, which is the worst part of the virus, is still probably a week and a half away.”
My colleague Sarah Marsh is currently running a separate liveblog with updates on the development of coronavirus in the UK:My colleague Sarah Marsh is currently running a separate liveblog with updates on the development of coronavirus in the UK:
Cases of the virus have risen to 8,672 in Russia, after they increased by more than 1,000 for the second day running.Cases of the virus have risen to 8,672 in Russia, after they increased by more than 1,000 for the second day running.
The crisis response centre reported on Wednesday that the number of cases had gone up by 1,175, a record daily rise, while the number of people who have died has increased by five to 63.The crisis response centre reported on Wednesday that the number of cases had gone up by 1,175, a record daily rise, while the number of people who have died has increased by five to 63.
French flagship military aircraft carrier, the Charles de Gaulle, is on its way back to port after staff on board showed symptoms in line with those of the coronavirus.French flagship military aircraft carrier, the Charles de Gaulle, is on its way back to port after staff on board showed symptoms in line with those of the coronavirus.
France’s armed forces ministry said on Wednesday that around 40 staff members were currently under strict medical observation.France’s armed forces ministry said on Wednesday that around 40 staff members were currently under strict medical observation.
Twitter chief executive Jack Dorsey has pledged to donate $1bn (£800m) to fund coronavirus research.
Dorsey, who co-founded Twitter in 2006 and went on to found payments company Square, tweeted on Tuesday that he was donating $1bn of Square shares to a charitable fund, called Start Small, to “fund global Covid-19 relief”.
Dorsey, 43, said the donation was equivalent to about 28% of his wealth. Dorsey has a fortune of about $3.9bn, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Singapore has announced new plans to boost food production, including by turning car park rooftops into urban farms, as the Covid-19 pandemic disrupts global supply chains.
The city-state only produces around 10% of its food needs, but restrictions on population movement are wreaking havoc on farming and food supply chains – raising concern of shortages and price increases.
“The current COVID-19 situation underscores the importance of local food production, as part of Singapore’s strategies to ensure food security,” authorities said in a statement.
“Local food production mitigates our reliance on imports, and provides buffer in the event of food supply disruptions.”
Authorities have assured residents that Singapore has sufficient food supplies amid bouts of panic buying, but aim to ramp up local production over the coming months.
Under the plans, a $21m grant will be provided to support the production of eggs, leafy vegetables and fish, as well as identifying alternative farming spaces such as vacant industrial sites.
As part of the project, the Singapore food agency will next month launch a tender for rooftop farms on public housing car parks for urban farming.
Loans worth €6bn ($6.5bn) to bail out airline group Air France-KLM is a “realistic” figure, a French junior transport minister has said.
“You are talking about an amount which is not unrealistic, I can confirm that,” Jean-Baptiste Djebbari told French news channel LCI TV on Wednesday.
He added that the possible aid package was being discussed by the French finance ministry and the Dutch government.
Airlines across the globe grounded most of their fleets as global demand for flights plummeted amid travel bans to prevent the spread of coronavirus.
In the US, airlines will receive nearly $60bn in financial assistance as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
New cases of Covid-19 have risen in Germany for the second day after four days of drops, data from the Robert Koch Institute has shown.
The number of confirmed infections grew by 4,003 in the past 24 hours to 103,228 on Wednesday.
The federal government agency also reported that the death toll rose by 254 to 1,861.
It is not unusual for a dip to be followed by a rise in the number of cases in Germany after a weekend due to the way in which they report data.
The last-minute decision to carry out the May presidential election by post in Poland due to the coronavirus pandemic has raised concerns, EU values and transparency commissioner Vera Jourova has said.
“I followed this process very closely. I’m concerned about free and fair elections and the quality of voting, of the legality and constitutionality of such a vote,” she told the Polish daily newspaper Rzeczpospolita on Wednesday.
This week, the country’s parliament, where ruling nationalists, the Law and Justice party, have a majority in alliance with two other parties, backed a plan to conduct the election on 10 May by postal ballot to limit the risks of spreading the virus.
Critics accuse the party of prioritising its own political interests over public health.
This is Amy Walker, taking over the global liveblog from my colleague Helen Sullivan. You can get in touch or follow me on Twitter (@amyrwalker).
That’s it from me, Helen Sullivan for today. I leave you now in the company of my colleague Amy Walker.
It has been 100 days since the WHO was first alerted to the existence of a new virus. Not sure about you, but where I’m sitting (at home) it feels a lot longer.
My colleague Michael Safi takes you through the first three-and-a-bit months of the coronavirus crisis in the story below. It’s well worth a read. What a way to start the new decade.
Campaigners have welcomed the relaxation of immigration restrictions by governments across Europe and the Americas to allow doctors, nurses and other key workers from refugee and migrant communities to join efforts against coronavirus.
And they urged countries still preventing medically trained asylum seekers from working – including Britain – to follow suit
Fears of power vacuum as PM stays in ICU
Boris Johnson has spent a second night in intensive care in a “stable” condition with coronavirus symptoms as questions about who was running the country continued to rage. The prime minister was said to be breathing without assistance and was conscious at St Thomas’ hospital in London.
Dominic Raab, who is the prime minister’s “designated survivor”, led the daily government briefing yesterday and said the PM would “pull through”. But it remains unclear how long Johnson will be in hospital and Raab said he would need cabinet agreement to reach any major decision such as lifting the lockdown. No 10 said last night that there would be no review of the curbs next week as promised by Johnson when he introduced them three weeks ago.
It was a testing day for Raab as Britain recorded its biggest daily death toll so far and an American university forecast that the UK would be the worst-hit country in Europe. Chief medical officer Chris Whitty also admitted the UK must learn from Germany, where the death rate has been far lower.
How did coronavirus start and where did it come from? Was it really Wuhan’s animal market?
In the public mind, the origin story of coronavirus seems well fixed: in late 2019, someone at the now-world-famous Huanan seafood market in Wuhan was infected with a virus from an animal.
The rest is part of an awful history still in the making, with Covid-19 spreading from that first cluster in the capital of China’s Hubei province to a pandemic that has killed about 80,000 people so far.
But there is uncertainty about several aspects of the Covid-19 origin story that scientists are trying hard to unravel, including which species passed it to a human. They’re trying hard because knowing how a pandemic starts is a key to stopping the next one.
Here is a wrap of the most important developments over the last few hours.
Donald Trump has criticised the World Health Organization (WHO), and by implication Beijing, saying the global body is “China-centric” and “biased” towards the rival superpower.
As Wuhan, the city at the centre of the outbreak, began to return to normal life, Trump said the WHO had “been wrong about a lot of things”, and threatened to put a hold on WHO funding. When asked if that was a good idea during a pandemic, Trump denied saying it, and then said they would “look at it”.
The US has nearly 400,000 cases, and 13,000 deaths, compared with close to 83,000 cases in China and 3,337 deaths. Globally, there are more than 1.4m cases and just over 82,000 deaths.
Meanwhile, the British prime minister, Boris Johnson has spent a second night in intensive care amid concerns about the seriousness of his condition, and the power vacuum he leaves behind. His “designated survivor”, Dominic Raab, still requires cabinet approval for major decisions.
There are fears the UK will become the worst hit country in Europe, with more than 40% of the continent’s deaths, according to forecasts.