Italy's Covid-19 death toll edges up as new cases fall – latest updates

Monday, April 20:

Italy records 454 new fatalities

Deaths from the Covid-19 epidemic in Italy rose by 454 on Monday, slightly up on Sunday's tally, while the number of new cases dropped to 2,256, the lowest level in well over a month, the Civil Protection Agency said.

The total death toll stood at 24,114, the second highest in the world after that of the United States, while the number of confirmed cases, which includes those who have fully recovered and those who have died of the disease, was 181,228.

For the first time since the outbreak came to light on February  21, the number of people registered as actively carrying the illness fell to 108,237, a drop of 20 on the day before.

Turkey reports 123 new deaths

Turkey on Monday confirmed 123 more fatalities from the novel coronavirus over the past 24 hours, bringing the death toll to 2,140.

The total number of registered coronavirus cases surged to 90,980 as 4,674 more people tested positive for the virus, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said on Twitter.

So far, a total of 13,430 people have recovered and been discharged from hospitals, while 1,454 patients were discharged on Monday only, Koca added.

He also said 39,703 tests were conducted over the past day, with the total number of tests reaching 673,980.

Turkey to impose four-day lockdown from Thursday

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said that a four-day lockdown would be imposed in 31 cities from Thursday as part of efforts to stem the spread of the coronavirus.

Turkey imposed lockdowns in 31 cities over the past two weekends. Erdogan said the lockdown would be longer this time due to a national holiday that falls on Thursday, April 23, adding that weekend lockdowns could continue "for some time".

Speaking after a cabinet meeting, Erdogan said Turkey aims to bring the outbreak to a level that would allow for a normalisation of life after the Eid al Fitr religious holiday at the end of May, adding that steps could be taken before that.

France records more than 20,000 deaths

France on Monday officially registered more than 20,000 deaths from the coronavirus, becoming the fourth country to pass that threshold after Italy, Spain and the United States, and the pace of increase in fatalities and infections sped up again after several days of slowing.

"The epidemic is very deadly and is far from over," France's public health chief Jerome Salomon told a news briefing, adding that the death toll was now higher than that of the heat wave in the summer of 2003.

He said the number of people in intensive care had fallen for the 12th consecutive day, to 5,683 – the lowest since March 31 – suggesting the national lockdown is having positive effects in containing the disease.

Another encouraging signal was a decline for the sixth day in a row in people hospitalised for Covid-19, even though the total, at 30,584 versus 30,610 on Sunday, is going down only slowly.

While France is due to start unwinding some confinement measures from May 11, Salomon insisted on the importance of strictly complying with the lockdown.

He said coronavirus-linked fatalities were up 2.8 percent, at 20,265, after an increase of 2.0 percent on Sunday. 

UK sees 449 fatalities

The British government on Monday said there were "encouraging signs" that the coronavirus outbreak was easing but warned it was too early to lift the lockdown despite new evidence of the economic toll.

Some 16,509 people hospitalised with Covid-19 in Britain have now died, new health ministry figures showed, up by 449 – the lowest daily toll for a fortnight.

Health officials say the number of new cases is flat and figures for people in hospital in London, the epicentre of the outbreak in Britain, continue to fall.

Netherlands records 67 new deaths 

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the Netherlands rose by 750 on Monday to 33,405, health authorities said, with 67 new deaths.

Total confirmed deaths are now 3,751, the National Institute for Public Health (RIVM) said in its daily update. 

The RIVM cautions that the real number of cases and deaths in the Netherlands are higher, as it primarily tests only health workers and the very ill. 

Putin warns Russia yet to peak as cases surpass 47,00

President Vladimir Putin said Russia had managed to slow the spread of the new coronavirus but warned the peak of the outbreak still lay ahead after the number of confirmed infections surged past 47,000 nationwide.

Russia reported 4,268 new confirmed coronavirus cases on Monday, down from more than 6,000 the day before. Forty-four people died overnight, bringing the death toll to 405, Russia's coronavirus task force said.

But despite the clampdown, infections have spread from Russia's worst-hit area in Moscow and penetrated all of its more than 80 regions, Putin said at a televised meeting with officials and health experts.

Aid worker dies in Nigeria's conflict-hit Borno

An aid worker has died in Nigeria's northeast after catching the new coronavirus, his employer Medicins Sans Frontieres said, raising fears that the infection has found a foothold in the troubled region.

The government and aid groups were trying to trace anyone who had come into contact with the man before he died, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, Edward Kallon, said on Monday.

The case was the first confirmed in Borno, a state at the epicentre of a decade-long insurgency that has killed thousands and forced an estimated 1.7 million to flee, many into crowded displacement camps. 

Albania to resume some business activity 

Agriculture, fishing, mineral, oil and textile sectors in Albania are among those permitted to reboot activity once they have received a certificate from the Health Ministry, according to a list published on the government's website.

Hotels that meet all required hygiene conditions will also be allowed to open their doors, though venues like bars, restaurants and beauty salons remain shuttered.

Under the new relaxed rules, businesses must also respect a nightly 5:30 pm (1530 GMT) curfew and "strictly" enforce social-distancing measures for employees, who must wear protective gear, the government said.

Uncief seeks $92.4 million in new funds

The UN children's agency appealed for $92.4 million in new funds for the Middle East and North Africa to help combat the effects of coronavirus on already poverty-stricken areas.

"The region has the biggest number of children in need in the world due to ongoing conflicts and wars," said Ted Chaiban, UNICEF director for the Middle East and North Africa, in a statement.

The combination of a lack of "or inadequate basic services, years of conflict, poverty, deprivation and now Covid-19 are hitting vulnerable children the most, making their hard lives simply unbearable," he added.

Over 130 refugees infected in Lisbon

More than 130 refugees housed in a youth hostel in Portugal's capital Lisbon have been infected by the new coronavirus and placed in quarantine, the mayor's office said.

Portugal has granted immigrants awaiting regularisation of their papers and asylum seekers the same rights as residents, in particular access to medical care during a state of emergency decreed last month to curb the coronavirus pandemic. 

Out of a total of some 180 tenants, 138 tested positive and they were relocated and placed in quarantine, the municipality said.

The hostel was evacuated on Sunday after the case of a man who had been hospitalised was reported, Lisbon deputy Mayor Carlos Costa told reporters. 

Swiss coronavirus cases rise to 27,944

The Swiss death toll has reached 1,142, the country's public health ministry said, rising from 1,135 people on Sunday.

The number of positive tests also increased to 27,944 from 27,740 on Sunday, it said. 

The slowdown in the number of new cases has allowed the Swiss government to start relaxing its lockdown restrictions from April 27. 

Iran's death toll from outbreak rises to 5,209

The death toll from the virus outbreak in Iran reached 5,209 on Monday with 91 deaths in the past 24 hours, health ministry spokesman Kianush Jahanpur said in a statement on state TV on Monday.

The total number of diagnosed cases in Iran, the Middle Eastern country hardest hit by the outbreak, has reached 83,505, he said. 

Malaysia reports 36 new cases with no new deaths

Malaysian health authorities on Monday reported 36 new cases, the lowest daily rise since the government imposed curbs on movement and business to contain the spread of the pandemic a month ago.

The new cases bring the cumulative total to 5,425 cases. 

The health ministry reported no new deaths on Monday, keeping total fatalities at 89. 

Spain's confirms cases surpass 200,000

The number of people diagnosed with the disease in Spain has passed the 200,000 threshold, the country's health ministry said on Monday.

The ministry said the number of cases rose to 200,210 from195,944 cases on Sunday. Spain has the second-highest number of diagnosed cases in the world after the United States, according to Reuters data.

The cumulative death toll from the coronavirus rose to20,852 on Monday from 20,453 the day before, the ministry said

Philippines records 19 new deaths, 200 more cases

The Philippines health ministry on Monday reported 19 new deaths and 200 additional infections.

In a bulletin, the health ministry said total infections have risen to 6,459 while deaths have increased to 428. 

But 41more patients recovered, bringing total recoveries to 613.

Over 13,000 people linked to cluster test negative in Vietnam

More than 13,400 people linked to and outbreak in a village on the outskirts of the Vietnamese capital Hanoi have tested negative, the government said.

"97.7 percent of the total samples tested negative for the virus. Results of the rest will be released in coming days," the government said in a statement.

The village, 32km from the capital city, was considered an epicentre and was placed under lockdown since April 7, after 13 people living there, including a Samsung Display worker, were infected.

Vietnam's health ministry on Monday said over 200 samples linked to the Samsung Display worker also tested negative for the virus.

India reports biggest one-day virus spike as lockdown eased

India recorded its biggest single-day spike in cases on Monday as the government eased one of the world's strictest lockdowns to allow some manufacturing and agricultural activity to resume.

An additional 1,553 cases were reported over 24 hours, raising the national total past 17,000. At least 543 people have died from the respiratory disease caused by the virus, and epidemiologists forecast the peak may not be reached before June.

Singapore confirms record jump of 1,426 cases

Singapore's health ministry confirmed on Monday an additional 1,426 cases, a record daily jump that took the city-state's tally to 8,014.

The ministry said the vast majority of the new cases were among migrant workers living in dormitories.

Poland may retighten restrictions if cases spike

Poland may reverse the loosening of restrictions to curb the spread of the virus if the number of new cases rises significantly, Health Minister Lukasz Szumowski said.

"It can be always (reversed)," Szumowski told public radio, asked if the loosening of restrictions might be reversed if there was a spike in the cases of new coronavirus infections.

Poland started reopening parks and forests on Monday as the government eased a few of the restrictions that have brought daily life to a virtual standstill. 

On Sunday, 545 new infections were recorded in Poland, the biggest daily rise to date.

UK to collect survivors' blood for treatment trials

United Kingdom is preparing to collect the blood from Covid-19 survivors to investigate if convalescent plasma transfusions could improve a patient's speed of recovery and chances of survival.

"NHS Blood and Transplant is preparing to collect Covid-19 convalescent plasma from people who have recovered from this illness," a spokeswoman said. 

"We envisage that this will be initially used in trials as a possible treatment for Covid-19."

"If fully approved, the trials will investigate whether convalescent plasma transfusions could improve a Covid-19 patient's speed of recovery and chances of survival," the blood service said.

"We are working closely with the government and all relevant bodies to move through the approvals process as quickly as possible," it said.

Norway begins reopening nurseries after month-long closure

Norway, which says it has the virus under control, on Monday started opening up pre-schools after a month-long closure, an AFP correspondent reported.

Authorities have said the reopening was possible because children have been less affected by the disease, although some parents have expressed reservations over the decision.

Thailand reports 27 new cases, no new deaths

Thailand on Monday reported 27 new cases, bringing the nation's total to 2,792 cases, a senior health official said.

Of the new cases, 16 had come into contact with a previously confirmed case, said Taweesin Wisanuyothin, a spokesman for the government's Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration.

No new deaths were reported for the third consecutive day.

Thailand has had a total of 47 fatalities, and 1,999 patients have recovered.

Germany's cases rise by 1,775, deaths by 100

Germany's confirmed cases rose by 1,775 to 145,742, data from the Robert Koch Institute for infectious diseases showed on Monday, marking the second consecutive day that the number of new infections had fallen.

The reported death toll rose by 110 to 4,404, the tally showed. 

New Zealand extends lockdown by a week

New Zealand has extended its lockdown measures by a week, after which it will move to lower level of restrictions, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Monday.

"New Zealand will move out of Alert Level 4 lockdown at 11.59pm on Monday April 27, one week from today," Ardern said in a news conference.

"We will then hold in Alert Level 3 for two weeks, before reviewing how we are tracking again, and making further decisions at Cabinet on the 11th of May," she said.

100,000 infections in Latin America

The number of infections across Latin America surpassed 100,000 on Sunday with nearly 5,000 deaths, according to an AFP tally based on official figures reported by individual countries. 

Brazil, with a population of 210 million, has the most cases, 38,654 infections and 2,462 deaths, although experts believe the number of infections to be far greater, given relatively little testing. 

Based on official figures, Latin America as a whole had 100,952 cases on Sunday, with 4,924 deaths.

China reports 12 new mainland cases

China reported 12 new infections on April 19, down from 16 a day earlier, with no new deaths, the country's health authority said on Monday. 

Of the total, eight were imported, down from nine on the previous day, the National Health Commission said in its daily bulletin. 

There were four cases of local infection, including three in the northeastern border province of Heilongjiang and one in Inner Mongolia. 

China also reported 49 new asymptomatic cases on the mainland on April 19, compared to 44 a day earlier. 

Mainland China now has an accumulated total of 82,747 cases and 4,632 deaths as of the end of April 19.

Trump says getting close to a deal with Democrats 

US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that Republicans were "close" to getting a deal with Democrats on another legislative package to help alleviate economic damage done by the pandemic. 

At a White House briefing, the president suggested there could be a resolution by Monday. 

Mexico's records 686 deaths so far 

Mexican Deputy Health Minister Hugo Lopez-Gatell said on Sunday that Mexico has registered a total of 8,261 confirmed infections and 686 deaths. 

That is up from 7,497 cases and 650 deaths as of Saturday.

Honduras extends curfew by one week 

The government of Honduras on Sunday extended a curfew through April 26 in an effort to contain the virus which has infected 472 people and killed 46 in the impoverished Central American country. 

"In order to better control the spread of Covid-19, we decided to extend the current total curfew from Sunday (April) 19 at 3:00 pm, until Sunday, April 26, 2020, at 3:00 pm," said the spokesman for the Honduran security ministry, Jair Meza. 

Cases in Peru top 15,000

Peru reported over 15,000 cases on Sunday, the second-highest tally in Latin America, as the disease continues to ravage the economy of the world's No. 2 copper producer. 

The crisis has paralysed Peru and left millions without jobs.

Peru recorded its first case on March 6 and took 25 days to reach 1,000 cases. 

It took only 14 more days to reach 10,000 cases on April 14, according to a Reuters tally. 

Peru has reported a total of 15,628 cases and 400 deaths, the health ministry said.