Paris: More than 727,080 cases of infection and 34,610 deaths have been recorded in 183 countries and territories since the coronavirus epidemic started in China in December, according to an AFP tally compiled Monday based on official sources.
Italy has 10,779 deaths and has recorded 97,689 cases, Spain 7,340 deaths out of 85,195 cases, mainland China 3,304 deaths and 81,470 cases, Iran 2,757 deaths and 41,495 cases and France 2,606 fatalities and 40,174 cases.
A Greek woman aged in her 70s became the first person to die of COVID-19 on the Greek Aegean island of Lesbos, where the overcrowded Moria migrant camp is based.
Death toll tops 25,000 in Europe
The coronavirus pandemic has killed more than 25,000 people in Europe, according to an AFP tally Monday taken from official sources.
With a total of 25,037 deaths out of 399,381 officially declared cases, Europe is now the continent with the highest toll from COVID-19. Italy has 10,779 deaths and Spain 7,340, making them the two most affected countries globally with more than three quarters of the deaths in Europe.
Italy looks to extend lockdown as cases near 100,000
Italian authorities said on Sunday they would extend a month-long lockdown to stem the coronavirus pandemic, as the number of deaths in the country reached 10,779 and the number of infected neared 100,000.
The civil protection service reported another 756 fatalities in the world’s worst-hit nation on Sunday, while the number of officially registered cases of COVID-19 increased by 5,217 to 97,689.
Nevertheless, the daily rise in infections has slowed to 5.6 per cent — the lowest rate since Italian officials started tracking cases following the first death on February 21.
In the epicentre of the pandemic, the region around Milan where the number of cases previously increased daily, the number of Italians receiving intensive care remained almost unchanged.
Spain becomes third worst-hit country
Spain confirmed another 812 deaths in 24 hours from the coronavirus, bringing the total number of deaths to 7,340, according to health ministry figures.
The number of confirmed infections in Spain has now reached 85,195 cases. Around 12,298 health workers among patients including Spain’s health emergency chief Fernando Simon.
With the latest figures, Spain became the third country to surpass China in infections after the United States and Italy.
US could see 100,000-200,000 deaths: Top health expert
In a frightening warning, the US will see 100,000 to 200,000 deaths from the coronavirus, the Trump administration’s topmost infection disease expert forecast on Sunday as the pandemic infected nearly 125,000 people in the country.
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Director Anthony Fauci said in an interview on CNN that the US will certainly have millions of cases of COVID-19 and more than 100,000 deaths.
“Looking at what we are seeing now, I would say between 100,000-200,00 deaths from coronavirus.”
“We’re going to have millions of cases,” he said.
“But I don’t want to be held to that because the pandemic is such a moving target,” Fauci added.
According to Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Centre, the US has 124,763 cases and witnessed 2,612 deaths as of Sunday morning.
A total of 2,612 patients have recovered, it said.
Globally, the number of COVID-19 cases stand at 684,652 and more than 32,000 people have died of the disease.
Israeli PM enters quarantine after aide tested positive for coronavirus
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his close advisers have been placed under quarantine after an aide on Parliament affairs tested positive for coronavirus, his office said on Monday.
The step was a precaution and is being taken even before the epidemiological investigation has been concluded, according to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office.
Even before the epidemiological investigation is over and to remove all doubt, the Prime Minister has decided that he and his close staff will remain in isolation until the epidemiological investigation is completed, the statement said.
In accordance with the findings, the Health Ministry and the personal physician of the Prime Minister will set a day to end the isolation, it added.
At least 2,757 killed in Iran outbreak
Iran’s official coronavirus death toll reached 2,757 and the number of infections crossed 40,000.
The Islamic republic is one of the countries worst hit by the virus, which originated in China.
Swiss death toll nears 300, positive tests approach 15,500
In Switzerland, 295 people have died in the coronavirus outbreak, the country’s public health bureau said, rising from 257 people on Sunday.
The number of confirmed cases increased to 15,475 from 14,336 on Sunday, it said.
Germany reports 120 new deaths
Death toll from coronavirus in Germany climbed up to 541, with 120 new deaths in the past 24 hours, according to the figures released by local health authorities.
The Berlin-based website Coronavirus-Monitor, which compiles up-to-date numbers from the local health authorities, has reported 6,996 new cases, bringing the total infections to 62,435.
More than 10,500 people are reported to have recovered from the virus.
Austria to ban tourist stays at hotels
Austria is banning the use of hotels for tourism as part of wide-ranging efforts to slow the spread of the coronavirus with Easter holidays approaching, Health Minister Rudolf Anschober said.
“A third point are hotels, with regard to the Easter holidays … We want to stop the touristic use of hotels for this phase,” Anschober told a government news conference.
Moscow begins lockdown
Moscow imposed a lockdown in a bid to slow the spread of the coronavirus as Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin asked regional authorities to make similar preparations.
The Russian capital announced the strict new isolation measures after many Muscovites refused to heed official recommendations and self-isolate at the weekend and instead went to parks for barbecues.
The country has so far reported 1,534 cases of coronavirus and eight deaths, with more than one thousand infections in the capital.
Coronavirus claims first life in Bolivia
Bolivia confirmed its first coronavirus-related death on Sunday, with confirmed cases rising to 96.
Health Minister Anibal Cruz announced that the patient was a 78-year-old female from eastern Santa Cruz.
Disclosing that the patient’s death and organ failure was due to old age, the minister recommended Bolivians to take care of the elderly who are “more vulnerable and sensitive to this disease.”
Thailand reports two new coronavirus deaths
Thailand’s public health ministry said on that two more people have died from the novel coronavirus, bringing the total number of deaths in the country to nine.
The two deaths included a 54-year-old Thai man in the southern province of Yala who had recently returned from Malaysia, and a 56-year-old Thai woman in Bangkok, said Anupong Sujariyakul, a senior official at the public health ministry’s Department of Disease Control.
Earlier on Monday, Thailand reported 136 new coronavirus cases, raising the total number of infections to 1,524.
Australia announces A$130 billion aid package
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison committed an A$130 billion ($79.86 billion) package to help save jobs as shockwaves from the coronavirus pandemic rip through the economy.
The package includes an A$1,500 ($923.10) “job keeper” payment to be paid to employers every two weeks, for each worker under the scheme.
“Our goal is to protect the lives and livelihoods,” Morrison said in a televised briefing from Canberra.
Qatar cases rise to 634
Qatar’s Health Ministry confirmed 44 new cases of the novel coronavirus, bringing the country’s total to 634.
In a statement, the ministry said that while some of the cases originated from abroad, others were contacts of people who had been diagnosed with the virus.
Taiwan reports third death
A third person infected with the coronavirus has died in Taiwan, the government said, as the number of cases on the island approached 300.
According to previously announced data, the person was a man in his 40s who was infected while overseas and had returned to Taiwan having been on holiday in Austria and the Czech Republic.
Taiwan said on Sunday that its virus case total had risen to 298.
Argentina extends quarantine until mid-April
Argentina’s President Alberto Fernandez said that the country would extend a mandatory nationwide quarantine period until the middle of April in a bid to slow the spread of the virus.
The quarantine, which restricts non-essential workers from leaving their homes apart from to buy groceries or medicines, has seen the South American country’s streets virtually emptied, while its major grains industry has faced some disruption.
The tough measure was initially until the end of March. It will now be in place until the end of the Easter Holy Week, Fernandez said, which would mean it would be lifted on April 12.
Vietnam PM asks major cities to prepare for lockdown
Vietnam’s prime minister has asked major cities to prepare for possible lockdowns to stop the spread of the coronavirus as the number of confirmed cases in the Southeast Asian country almost reached 200, a government statement said.
“Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City have to review and update plans to battle the virus, and have to stand ready for city lockdown scenarios,” Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said in the statement.
South Korea reports 78 new cases, total 9,661
South Korea reported 78 new coronavirus cases on Monday, taking the national tally to 9,661, the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said.
The death toll rose to 158, from 152 a day earlier, while 195 people recovered from the virus, according to the KCDC.
Mexico’s confirms 145 new cases,4 new deaths
Mexico’s health ministry on Sunday confirmed 145 new coronavirus cases and four new deaths in the last 24 hours, for a total of 993 cases and 20 deaths.
China reports 31 new coronavirus cases in mainland
Mainland China reported 31 new coronavirus cases on Sunday, including one locally transmitted infection, the country’s National Health Commission said, dropping from 45 cases a day earlier.
The commission said in a statement on Monday that 4 new deaths were reported, putting the cumulative death toll from the coronavirus outbreak in the mainland at 3,304 at the end on March 29. The total number of infections to date rose to 81,470.
New York state surpasses 1,000 deaths
New York state surpassed a grim milestone Sunday as its death toll from the coronavirus outbreak climbed above 1,000, less than a month after the disease was first detected in the state.
New York City reported in the evening that its toll had risen to 776. The total number of statewide deaths isn’t expected to be released until Monday, but with at least 250 additional deaths recorded outside the city as of Sunday morning, the state’s total fatalities were at least 1,026.
Japan to expand entry ban
Japan will expand its entry ban to include citizens travelling from the United States, China, South Korea and most of Europe amid a rapid spread of the coronavirus pandemic, the Asahi newspaper reported.
The government may also ban entry from and travel to some countries in Southeast Asia and Africa, the Asahi said, citing a few government sources.
Panama confirms seven new deaths
Panama’s government confirmed 7 new deaths from coronavirus, bringing the toll to 24 since the outbreak hit the Central American nation.
The national director of Epidemiology, Lourdes Moreno, said there are 88 new confirmed infections, bringing the total number of cases to 989.
