Coronavirus

Israeli military to assist in nursing homes to try to stop virus outbreaks

The Office of the Israeli Prime Minister announced that the Israeli Defense Ministry is to provide help to nursing homes due to the growing number of outbreaks taking place…

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Photo Story: Massive sanitization campaign in Kuwait

Municipality workers spray disinfectant as a precaution against the spread of coronavirus at the Kuwait Salmiya market, following the outbreak of coronavirus, in Kuwait, 04 April 2020. (issued 05 April).…

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Germany records third straight drop in daily rate of new cases

Germany’s confirmed coronavirus infections rose by 5,936 in the past 24 hours to 91,714 on Sunday, the third straight drop in the daily rate of new cases, according to data…

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Greece turns stricken ship into floating hospital

Greek authorities began to evacuate a ship off the coast of Piraeus on which almost a third of passengers have coronavirus. The plan is to transfer the non-infected passengers off the…

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Photo Story: A funeral in times of the coronavirus pandemic

Employees of the 'Pompes Funebres Fontaine' funeral service company wear protective suits and face masks as they disinfect the coffin of a COVID-19 victim, in Gilly, Belgium. Belgium has over…

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Spain records smallest rise in infections since start of crisis

Spain’s coronavirus death toll has risen by 674 to 12,418 in the last day, according to figures which recorded the lowest number of victims in nine days. The number of…

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Greece quarantines second migrant camp after COVID-19 case confirmed

Greece has quarantined a second migrant facility on its mainland after a 53-year-old man tested positive for the new coronavirus, the migration ministry said on Sunday. The Afghan man lives…

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European Union survival at stake – Spanish PM

The European Union’s very survival is at stake and a new ‘Marshall Plan for Europe is needed’ to rebuild the continent’s economies, Spain’s prime minister writes in article published today by…

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EU’s von der Leyen calls for ‘Marshall Plan’ for Europe

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has called on EU nations to invest billions in the bloc's budget to avert catastrophic economic consequences from the current coronavirus crisis. "We…

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Lombardy enacts a law obliging citizens to wear face masks

Authorities in Lombardy, the Italian region worst-affected by coronavirus, have enacted a law obliging citizens to wear face masks when they go outside. In the absence of a mask, people should “cover…

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Photo Story: Pope Francis celebrates Palm Sunday Mass

Pope Francis holds a palm branch as he celebrates Palm Sunday mass behind closed doors in St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican, 05 April 5, 2020, during the lockdown to stem the…

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Australia confident can avoid worst impacts of coronavirus

Australia’s Chief Medical Officer Brendan Murphy said he is "increasingly confident" Australia will avoid the kind of devastation the coronavirus has caused in countries like Italy and the United States.…

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Virus alters Holy Week celebration worldwide

For Pope Francis at the Vatican, and for Christians worldwide from churches large and small, this will be an Easter like none other: The joyous message of Christ’s resurrection…

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Veteran British singer Marianne Faithfull ‘stable in hospital’ after Covid-19 diagnosis

Marianne Faithfull is being treated for COVID-19 in hospital, her agent has said. Francois Ravard said the singer songwriter, 73, is in a stable condition and is "responding to treatment"…

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Sweden’s pandemic strategy questioned as Stockholm death toll mounts

A spike in novel coronavirus infections and deaths in Stockholm has raised questions about Sweden’s decision to fight the outbreak without resorting to the lockdowns that have left much of…

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Cyber criminals threaten to hold hospitals to ransom – Interpol

As hospitals around the world struggle to handle the influx of COVID-19 patients, cyber criminals are threatening to exploit the crisis and hold them to ransom, according to an Interpol…

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Gulf states step up coronavirus fight, first death in Kuwait

Dubai imposed a two-week lockdown Saturday night and Saudi Arabia sealed off parts of the Red Sea city of Jeddah as Gulf states tightened measures in big cities to contain…

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Coronavirus cases in Libya increase

Libya has registered six new Coronavirus cases, bringing the number to 17 in total, according to the Libyan National Center for Disease Control. The six cases came after the center…

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Global cases are now over 1.2 million

Global cases of the coronavirus have now passed 1.2 million. China saw a slight rise in cases despite tough restrictions and a ban on foreign arrivals. Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea…

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Mainland China sees rise in new coronavirus cases

Mainland China reported 30 new coronavirus cases on Saturday, up from 19 a day earlier as the number of cases involving travellers from abroad as well as local transmissions increased,…

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Spain ‘close to passing peak’, plans to get masks for all citizens

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez says the country is "close to passing the peak of infections" as the number of coronavirus deaths fell for the second day in a…

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Turkey’s coronavirus death toll rises above 500

Confirmed coronavirus cases in Turkey rose by more than 3,000 to 23,934 on Saturday with deaths related to COVID-19 rising by 76 to 501 people, Heath Minister Fahrettin Koca said…

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Portugal’s coronavirus cases grow to over 10,000

Confirmed coronavirus cases in Portugal pushed past the 10,000 mark on Saturday, while government data showed more than half a million Portuguese workers were at risk of being temporarily laid…

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Queen to express hope crisis will prove ‘this generation is as strong as any’

The Queen is to stress the value of self-discipline and resolve during the coronavirus pandemic in a special address to the nation on Sunday. In a rare speech, she will…

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New York virus deaths surge past 3,500

New York state has recorded 630 more coronavirus deaths, another daily record that takes its toll to 3,565. Most deaths have been in New York City. The state now…

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Warning UK coronavirus death rate to stay high

High fatalities from the coronavirus will continue in the United Kingdom for at least another week or two even if people comply with stringent isolation measures, health authorities said on…

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Live Update: Covid-19 Bulletin Malta – Sunday 5th April 2020

Updated 2005 Three other recoveries - Prof C Gauci Health Superintendent Prof Charmaine Gauci announced that three further persons have now recovered. There are in all five persons who have…

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Trump tells Americans to expect ‘a lot of death’

Americans have been warned that they are heading into what could be their "toughest" few weeks, with "a lot of death" expected. The words of President Donald Trump came as…

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From Russia, with love

by Matthew Bugeja The world may have come to a grinding halt, but Russia has found a way to make headlines in the last week or so. It may have been…

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EU’s SURE response to Coronavirus explained

by Keith Zahra The European Commission is directing all available resources to save lives and support livelihoods in these times of crisis. Today, it has announced the setting up of…

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China mourns Covid-19 dead

China mourned the thousands who have died in the outbreak, flying the national flag at half mast throughout the country and suspending all forms of entertainment. The day of mourning…

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Is the mask a must?

While most western countries’ authorities didn’t initially recommend the practice for the general population, multiple governments from the Czech Republic to the U.S. now oblige or recommend everyone to cover…

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Man shot dead by police in Philipines after violating coronavirus rules

Police shot and killed a 63-year-old man in the southern province of Agusan del Norte after he violated coronavirus rules by not wearing a face mask and threatened officers. "The suspect…

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Germany has flown back 200,000 citizens who were stranded abroad due to Covid-19

Germany has flown back 200,000 citizens who were stranded abroad due to the worsening pandemic. "This was not always easy and there were a few bumps in the road," said Germany's Foreign…

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Italy registers reduction in fatalities and people in intensive care

There are 88,274 positive cases of coronavirus (+2,886 compared to yesterday). This was stated by the head of Civil Protection Angelo Borrelli, explaining that hospitalizations in intensive care decreased by…

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Spain considers extending emergency state – registers second successive significant drop

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez will ask parliament to extend lockdown measures by 15 more days until April 25, as the daily pace of new coronavirus infections and deaths slowed again…

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Boris Johnson’s pregnant fiancee in isolation with Covid-19

Carrie Symons has announced she has coronavirus after fiancee Boris Johnson went into isolation with the deadly pathogen. Ms Symonds made the announcement on Twitter earlier today saying: 'I've spent…

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UAE requests postponement of EXPO 2020

The United Arab Emirates has officially requested to postpone the start of the Expo 2020 Dubai until October next year due to the coronavirus pandemic, the body that oversees the…

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Britain on Saturday reported record daily deaths from COVID-19 including a five-year-old child

Britain on Saturday reported a record 708 daily deaths from COVID-19, including a five-year-old child, who is thought to be the country's youngest victim. Data published this afternoon by the…

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Laugh, Cry and Breathe… how to cope with the nauseating roller coster of emotions

Are you OK? But are you… really? It’s fine if your not, you know. A lot of people are definitely not OK right now. As we keep hearing, we are…

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Head of Maltese primary school’s heartfelt wishes and feelings in letter sent to her ‘school family’

The Head of a local primary school has penned a heartfelt letter to all her students, three weeks after the schools in Malta closed their doors for the rest of…

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Malta Development Bank launches COVID-19 Guarantee Scheme

The Malta Development Bank (MDB) has just launched the MDB COVID-19 Guarantee Scheme (CGS). The CGS is a key component of the wider package of Government’s COVID- 19 Response Support…

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Trudeau warns Trump of retaliation after US stopped company from sending respirators to Canada

Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau has warned Donald Trump that his decision to stop a US manufacturing company from sending respirators to Canada could prompt retaliatory measures. The Trump administration ordered 3M, a Minnesota-based manufacturer of…

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