Coronavirus

Novacyt wins French approval for COVID testing kit

Novacyt’s COVID-19 diagnostic test has been approved by France’s CNR arm of the Institut Pasteur, making it available for immediate distribution in France, the healthcare company said on Monday. The…

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Germany plans to end lockdown after April 19, considers mandatory face masks

Germany has drawn up a list of measures, including an obligation to wear masks in public, limits on public gatherings and the rapid tracing of infection chains, that officials think…

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Photo Story: Social distancing in India

Belongings are kept by people to secure their respective places in circles painted to maintain social distancing while waiting to get food distributed by a religious organisation during the nation-wide…

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Apple to ship 1 mn face shields a week for medical workers

Apple has said it will soon be producing one million face shields a week for medical workers battling the coronavirus pandemic. The tech giant had already sourced 20 million surgical…

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New restrictive measures adopted in the Ukraine

Ukraine's Cabinet provides the new norms of restrictive measures adopted to suppress the spread of COVID-19 acute respiratory disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus in Ukraine since 06 March. People…

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Photo Story: Holy Week during the pandemic

A clergyman carrying a cross speaks during the Way of the Cross on Palm Sunday in the center of Zakopane, Poland 05 April 2020. The procession took place without the…

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Patients rush to join studies testing drug for coronavirus

Coronavirus patients around the world have been rushing to join remdesivir studies that opened in hospitals in the last few weeks. Interest has been so great that the US National…

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Doctor death toll up to 87 in Italy

The death toll from the coronavirus among Italian doctors has risen to 87, with eight fresh deaths, the national federation of doctors guilds FNOMCEO said on Monday. The latest dead…

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Photo Story: Don Quixote sculpture in times of coronavirus

The sculpture of Don Quixote is seen wearing a mask in front of what was the house of Spanish writer Miguel de Cervantes, author of Don Quixote, in Alcala de…

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More than 100,000 Coronavirus cases in Middle East

Coronavirus cases across Middle East increased to 107,000 on Monday morning as the infections reached a grim milestone in the region. As recently as March 27 there were less than…

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Photo Story: Faithful celebrate Holy Week ‘processions’ on balconies

Neighbours, wearing hand-made penitent caps, put out a figure of the Virgin Mary (C) on a rope for a 'procession' between their balconies to mark Palm Sunday in the village…

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Austria becomes the first European country to announce plans to lift its lockdown

Austria plans to reopen smaller shops from next week in its first step to loosen a lockdown that has slowed the spread of the coronavirus, as long as the public…

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Photo Story: Drones to enforce social distancing in the Netherlands

A view of a drone with a built-in speaker at a parking lot in a shopping area in Heerlen, The Netherlands. The drone with a built-in speaker is used to…

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Russia defies calls to halt Victory Day parade rehearsals

Russia is holding rehearsals for its Victory Day parade, scheduled for 9 May despite the coronavirus crisis, as the Kremlin resists cancelling a patriotic holiday with major political significance. The…

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Belgian PM warns of “long process of reconstruction”

Belgium’s prime minister Sophie Wilmès has warned that “a long process of reconstruction” awaits the country once the worst of the coronavirus pandemic is over. In a video address to the nation…

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Number of COVID-19 Cases in Serbia Nears 2,000

With 284 new cases of the novel coronavirus confirmed in Serbia on Sunday, the total number of infections stands at 1,908. Out of the total number of cases, a majority…

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Special message from the Prime Minister of New Zealand to the country’s children

New Zealand’s prime minister Jacinda Ardern has classified the Tooth Fairy and the Easter Bunny as essential workers during the current lockdown in the country but said, “the Easter Bunny…

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Russia’s coronavirus cases increase to almost 1,000 in 24 hours

Russia’s coronavirus case tally has risen to 6,343 in the past 24 hours, a record daily increase of 954, the country’s crisis response centre said on Monday. Cases have been…

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Singapore quarantines 20,000 migrant workers

In Singapore, there was the highest spike in daily cases on Sunday, with 120 new confirmed infections. Around 20,000 foreign workers have now been told to stay in the dormitories…

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Deaths in Spain decline for fourth consecutive day, victims include 10 doctors

In Spain, the daily number of deaths has declined for the fourth consecutive day, raising tentative hopes that the worst of the country’s outbreak is over. The daily death toll…

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Germany reports fourth straight drop in daily rate of new coronavirus infections

Germany’s confirmed coronavirus infections rose by 3,677 in the past 24 hours to 95,391 on Monday, the fourth straight drop in the daily rate of new cases, according to data…

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Coronavirus cases in Libya increase to 18

Libya announced a new case of Coronavirus (Covid-19), bringing the total cases in the country to 18. The country’s National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) said that it had received…

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Indonesia makes mask-wearing mandatory

Indonesia has become the latest country to make it compulsory for everyone to wear face masks outside, with a new rule kicking in on Sunday. Health authorities are urging people…

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Scotland’s chief medical officer resigns after breaking lockdown rules

Scotland's chief medical officer has resigned after being caught breaching lockdown rules in place to curb the spread of coronavirus. Catherine Calderwood said she was "deeply sorry" for her "mistakes"…

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Swiss hospitals reportedly running out of money

Cash-strapped Swiss hospitals, in the front line of the fight against coronavirus, are calling for financial help and an end to the ban on non-emergency procedures which has sapped revenue, reports…

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Oil slips on oversupply fears

Oil prices skidded on Monday after Saudi-Russian negotiations to cut output were delayed, keeping oversupply concerns alive, while stocks jumped as investors were encouraged by a slowdown in coronavirus-related deaths…

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UN chief urges end to domestic violence, citing global surge

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Sunday night that there has been “a horrifying global surge in domestic violence” as fear of the coronavirus has grown along with its social…

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Ruby Princess docks at Port Kembla

The Ruby Princess, with only crew onboard, docks at Port Kembla, Wollongong, Australia, 06 April 2020. A criminal investigation will be launched into how cruise line operator Carnival Australia could…

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Spanish PM calls for lists of accommodation where Covid-19 patients could be housed

On Sunday, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez held one of his now weekly video conference calls with the premiers of Spain’s 17 regions. Sanchez discussed the progress of the virus throughout…

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UK PM Johnson will continue to lead government

Prime Minister Boris Johnson continues to lead the government, housing minister Robert Jenrick said on Monday after the British leader spent the night in hospital for tests because he was…

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Japan set to declare state of emergency

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will declare a state of emergency as early as Tuesday in a bid to stop the coronavirus spreading across the country, the Yomiuri newspaper reported,…

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Trump voices hope but warns of ‘horrifc’ death toll

President Donald Trump has warned that the US will reach a "horrific point" in terms of death rates as one of the country's top doctors said the nation should brace…

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China sees rises in new coronavirus cases

Mainland China reported 39 new coronavirus cases as of Sunday, up from 30 a day earlier, and the number of asymptomatic cases also surged, as Beijing continued to struggle…

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France’s death toll slows for second straight day

France’s daily death toll from the novel coronavirus fell in the past 24 hours and admissions into intensive care also slowed, the health ministry said on Sunday, thanking citizens…

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Live Update: Covid-19 Bulletin Malta – Monday 6th April 2020

Updated 1601 Lawyers, architects, notaries, dentists and accountants team up to request assistance In a joint press statement, organisations representing professionals including lawyers, architects, notaries, dentists and accountants have requested…

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UK leadership in limbo

Britain’s constitution offers no clear answer to the question now on many Britons’ minds: what happens if Prime Minister Boris Johnson, undergoing tests in hospital after persistent symptoms of coronavirus,…

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Photo Story: India holds lights-off vigil in sign of unity

Indian people light earthen lamps and candles during the lockdown which was extended till 14 April in an effort to combat the spread of coronavirus and COVID-19, at Jalot village,…

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NY’s death count nears 4,200, but there’s a glimmer of hope

A slight dip in new coronavirus deaths in New York over the last 24 hours may be a glimmer of hope that the spread is slowing, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said…

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High hopes in Italy as death toll slows

Italy reported its lowest daily COVID-19 death toll for more than two weeks on Sunday as authorities began to look ahead to a second phase of the battle against the…

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Tiger in US Zoo tests positive for Coronavirus, believed to be infected by zoo keeper

A four-year-old female Malayan tiger at the Bronx Zoo has tested positive for the coronavirus. BBC reports that Bronx Zoo, in New York City, says the test result was confirmed…

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Covid-19 Global Update – As of 05 April there are 1 174 652 COVID-19 cases and 64,400 deaths

Source European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (European Union Agency) Since 31 December 2019 and as of 05 April 2020, 1 174 652 cases of COVID-19 (in accordance with the applied case…

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British PM Boris Johnson admitted to hospital

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been admitted to hospital for tests, 10 days after testing positive for coronavirus, Downing Street has said. He was taken to a London hospital on Sunday…

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“We will meet again” – Queen Elizabeth

In only the fifth special televised broadcast, other than Christmas messages, of her long reign Queen Elizabeth has praised Britain’s “national spirit” in facing the challenge of coronavirus as she evoked…

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Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar answers to the call ‘Your Country Needs You’ and re-registers as medical practitioner

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has re-registered as a medical practitioner and will work one shift a week to help out during the coronavirus crisis, RTE reports. Mr Varadkar worked as a doctor for…

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Former head of Libyan rebel government, died from Coronavirus

Mahmoud Jibril, the former head of the Libyan rebel government that overthrew longtime ruler Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, has died from the coronavirus, his party said. Jibril, 68, died on…

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Italy registers lowest COVID-19 death count since 19th March

Italy continues to offer a glimmer of hope as the world continues to fight off the spread of the deadly coronavirus pandemic. A visibly encouraged Angelo Borrelli, Head of Italy's…

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621 further lives lost in the UK as law enforcers disperse sunbathers

The United Kingdom is fast approaching the glum 5,000 threshold of lives lost, with 621 deaths registered yesterday. The country's Department of Health also announced that as of this morning,…

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Photo Story: Masked Chocolate Easter Bunny in aid of medical personnel

Chocolate Easter Bunny wearing mouth mask called 'Lapinou Solidaire' and 'Lapinou Confined', made by artisan chocolate maker Genevieve Trepant works on at Cocoatree, a craft chocolate workshop in Lonzee, Belgium.…

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Photo Story: Egypt’s helping hand to Italy

Airport staff unloads medical aid for Italy arrived with 3 flights, 1 from Ukraine and 2 from Egypt to Pratica di Mare, near Rome, Italy. Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di…

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“No single country will be left behind in this crisis” says EU Commissioner for Internal Market

“Not one single country on the planet has been prepared, fully prepared, for this kind of crisis. No one." Those were the words of the man at the heart of…

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People in France denouncing their neighbours for breaking the lockdown rules

People in France have taken to calling the police to “denounce” their neighbours for breaking the lockdown rules. Calls to the police emergency number - 17 in France -…

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Censorship, Covid 19 and the Spanish Flu of 1918 – Lourdes Pullicino

By Lourdes Pullicino - Former journalist, lecturer in media and international relations On 25 March, Reporters without Borders (RSF), the world’s largest NGO promoting freedom of information argued that had…

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Photo Story: Marriage in times of lockdown

A couple kisses each other after getting married at Brussels city hall in Brussels, Belgium. In order to contain the spread of coronavirus, Belgium is under lockdown, which is scheduled…

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He’s only human after all… but in his humanity is greatness

by Diletta Costanzo He doesn't bang his fists on the table. He doesn't raise his voice in public. He works and does things away from the cameras. He found himself…

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Tokyo reports highest jump in one day of coronavirus cases

Some 143 more cases of the novel coronavirus have been reported in Tokyo, the city’s governor said on Sunday, with the highest daily jump bringing the number of cases in…

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African economics face “complete collapse” UN official warns

Economies in some parts of Africa face a “complete collapse” unless the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic is controlled, a senior UN official with responsibility for operations on the continent…

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Barilla supports the Italians and Italy with money and an emotional TV spot

For all those who grew up with Italian TV, the tune of the 'Barilla Adverts' is probably part of one's life soundtrack. So are the scenes and the beautiful productions.…

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