More than 300,000 people are infected with coronavirus around the world, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University (JHU). That’s a huge jump in the numbers.
One week ago, JHU was reporting 156,396 confirmed cases.
Meanwhile, the number of deaths from Covid-19 has more than doubled from one week ago, when there were 5,833 deaths. Today, there are nearly 13,000, according to JHU.
Italian PM orders businesses to close all operations.
Italy’s government announced the closure of all “non-essential production activities” across the country, after the death toll from the coronavirus outbreak rose by 793 to 4,825 on Saturday. “Grocery stores and pharmacies will remain open,” said the prime minister, Giuseppe Conte. “But all the rest of the non-essential production activities, including plants and offices, will close down.”
Australia bans all non-essential domestic travel
The Australian government is banning all non-essential domestic travel as it unveils a A$66bn stimulus program to deal with the virus impact.vIt has warned of more draconian measures to come.
Former Real Madrid president Lorenzo Sanz dies of Covid-19.
The former Real Madrid president Lorenzo Sanz has died of coronavirus aged 76, La Liga announced on Saturday. Sanz, Real’s president from 1995 to 2000, had been admitted to hospital with a fever and tested positive for the virus.
Rihanna pledges $5m to curb coronavirus.
Rihanna has become the latest celebrity to join the effort to tackle the coronavirus pandemic. The singer’s Clara Lionel Foundation announced on Saturday that it has donated $5million to a number of organizations responding to the outbreak.
Bolivian presidential elections postponed amid coronavirus outbreak.
Bolivia’s interim government announced on Saturday it would postpone presidential elections originally slated for May 3 and institute a mandatory countrywide quarantine for 14 days as coronavirus spread across the Andean nation. The country’s electoral authority said in a statement it would “suspend the elections calendar” for 14 days to match the quarantine, but did not set a new date for the vote.
Britons stranded in Peru could be flown home early next week.
Hundreds of Britons stranded in Peru due to the coronavirus pandemic could be flown home early next week, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has said. More than 400 British and Irish citizens are believed to be in the Andean nation and have been unable to leave following a 15-day government lockdown imposed since Monday.
First coronavirus cases in Gaza Strip. The first two cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in the densely-populated Gaza Strip, Palestinian health officials said.
Vietnam bars entry to all foreigners, persons of Vietnamese descent holding visa exemption documents
Vietnam will temporarily bar entry to all foreign nationals, including persons of Vietnamese origin and their relatives who hold visa exemption documents, as part of more drastic measures to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19). The ban, pursuant to the conclusion of Prime Minister at a government meeting on COVID-19 prevention and control on Saturday, will come into effect from 00:00 Sunday, March 22.
Visas will be issued when necessary to those entering Vietnam for diplomatic purposes, official duties, or other special cases. Such persons have to undergo compulsory inspection procedures, medical declaration, and appropriate isolation upon entering the country.
The ban will be applicable to all foreign arrivals – by sea, waterways, road, and air.
@The Guardian/ CNN/ TuoiTreNews/ Vietnam Insider