UK has Europe's second highest Covid-19 death toll – latest updates

Wednesday, April 29

UK has Europe's 2nd-highest Covid-19 death toll, new figures show

The United Kingdom now has Europe's second-highest official death toll from the novel coronavirus pandemic, according to new figures on Wednesday that cover fatalities in all settings, including in nursing homes.

Some 26,097 people died across the United Kingdom after testing positive for Covid-19 as of April 28 at 1600 GMT, Public Health England (PHE) said.

That means the United Kingdom has had more Covid-19 deaths than France or Spain have reported.

Saudi Arabia allows entry to and exit from Qatif province

Saudi Arabia will allow entry into and exit from Qatif province starting Thursday, the state news agency reported on Wednesday citing a source within the interior ministry.

The source added that this comes as the result of Saudi Arabia's efforts to fight the coronavirus pandemic.

Qatif, located in the eastern region of Saudi Arabia, was under lockdown since March 8 to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Finland to reopen schools and daycares gradually 

Finland will reopen schools and daycare centres after May 13, having kept them mostly closed since March 18 due to the coronavirus pandemic, the government said on Wednesday.

Finland's Prime Minister Sanna Marin said children would return to school gradually, starting on May 14 for a little more than two weeks, before their summer break begins as usual at the start of June.

Pupils at upper secondary and vocational schools will continue to study remotely, she added.

By Wednesday, 206 people had died in Finland and it had 4,906 confirmed coronavirus cases.

Hungary eases restrictions outside Budapest - PM

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Wednesday announced an easing of population movement restrictions outside Budapest, which has reported the most cases of coronavirus infections, saying shops will be allowed to reopen without time limits.

However, the wearing of masks covering the face will be mandatory in shops and on public transport, Orban said in a video posted on his Facebook page.

He said the easing of restrictions would be reviewed every two weeks.

France reports 427 more deaths, toll tops 24,000

France on Wednesday reported 427 more deaths from Covid-19 to push the total above 24,000 but it also saw new declines in the numbers of patients in hospital and intensive care.

The total number of deaths in hospitals and nursing homes from the virus in France is now 24,087, the health ministry said in a statement.

The daily toll was slightly higher than the 367 deaths announced on Tuesday.

But the latest figures confirmed the recent more optimistic trends seen over the last days with 650 fewer coronavirus patients in hospital and 180 less in intensive care.

Nigeria to ease lockdowns in three states over six-week period

Nigeria will ease coronavirus lockdowns in three states over a six-week period from May 4, the head of the country's task force on the virus said on Wednesday.

The easing of restrictions in Lagos, Abuja and Ogun states will be split into two-week phases, said Boss Mustapha, the chairman of Nigeria's presidential task force for Covid-19.

He was providing details after President Muhammadu Buhari announced on Monday that there would be a "phased and gradual" easing of the lockdowns.

The number of coronavirus cases has, however, continued to rise. On Tuesday, Nigeria reported 195 new cases of the novel coronavirus, nearly double the previous daily high. There are now 1,532 confirmed cases and 44 deaths.

WHO declines comment on remdesivir

A top World Health Organization official declined comment on Wednesday on reports that Gilead Science's remdesivir could help treat Covid-19, the respiratory disease caused by the novel coronavirus, but said that further data was needed.

"I wouldn't like to make any specific comment on that, because I haven't read those publications in detail," Dr Mike Ryan, head of the WHO's emergencies programme, told an online briefing in response to a question, adding it can sometimes take a number of publications to determine a drug's efficacy.

"Clearly we have the randomised control trials that are underway both in the UK and US, the 'Solidarity trials' with WHO. Remdesivir is one of the drugs under observation in many of those trials. So I think a lot more data will come out," he said.

Ryan added: "But we are hopeful this drug and others may prove to be helpful in treating Covid-19." 

Italy's daily death toll falls, new cases stable

Deaths from the Covid-19 epidemic in Italy climbed by 323 on Wednesday, against 382 the day before, the Civil Protection Agency said, while the daily tally of new infections stood at 2,086, broadly stable from 2,091 on Tuesday.

The total death toll since the outbreak came to light on February 21 now stands at 27,682, the agency said, the second highest in the world after that of the United States.

The number of officially confirmed cases, which includes those who have died and recovered, amounts to 203,591, the third highest global tally behind those of the United States and Spain.

People registered as currently carrying the illness declined to 104,657 from 105,205 on Tuesday.

There were 1,795 people in intensive care on Wednesday against a previous 1,863, maintaining a long-running decline. Of those originally infected, 71,252 were declared recovered against 68,941 a day earlier.

The agency said 1.313 million people had been tested for the virus against 1.275 million the day before, out of a population of around 60 million.

WHO says it acted 'quickly and decisively' on new coronavirus

The chief of the World Health Organization (WHO) defended the agency's record in its response to the new coronavirus in a news briefing on Wednesday, saying it had acted "quickly and decisively".

The Geneva-based UN body has faced mounting criticism in recent weeks, especially from top donor the United States, which has cut off funding.

"From the beginning, the WHO has acted quickly and decisively to respond to warn the world," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said after giving a timeline of what the body knew in the lead-up to declaring Covid-19 a global emergency on January 30.

"We sounded the alarm early and we sounded it often," he added.

Minorities in South Asia face worst of pandemic - report

Minority groups and marginalised communities in South Asia are particularly at risk during the novel coronavirus pandemic, a group of human rights organisations have warned in a report published on Wednesday.

The South Asia Collective's (SAC) annual flagship report said the pandemic came at a time of "rising majoritarian nationalism" as minorities in the region face "sustained assaults" by governments.

The South Asia State of Minorities Report 2019 said that vulnerable communities, among them religious minorities, continued to be "denied official refugee or minority status" due to discriminatory laws in six countries: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

Guinea-Bissau's PM, three ministers test positive

Guinea-Bissau’s premier and three government ministers tested positive for the novel coronavirus, local media reported Wednesday.

Prime Minister Nuno Gomes Na Biam and the trio of ministers were immediately quarantined at a hotel in the capital of Bissau, Health Minister Antonio Deuna said.

Canada's coronavirus outbreak slows 

Canadian hospitals had beds to spare as the country hit 50,373 confirmed coronavirus cases on Wednesday, and several provinces were relaxing public health measures, but health experts were already worrying about a future wave of infections.

While it is too soon to say whether Canada's epidemic has peaked, it has slowed, thanks to swift workplace closures and other physical distancing measures: New cases doubled every three days early in the epidemic, and now double every 16 days, the government said on Tuesday.

Bosnia reports sharp rise in cases 

Bosnia reported on Wednesday its sharpest daily rise in new coronavirus infections this month after its two autonomous regions had gradually begun to ease lockdowns.

There were 93 new infections and two deaths in the previous 24 hours, compared with 20 new infections a day earlier and 49 the day before that, officials said.

The total number of infected people rose to 1,677 with 65 deaths, while 29,130 have been tested.

Spain's daily death toll rises to 325

Spain recorded 325 deaths from the novel coronavirus overnight, up from 301 reported the previous day, the health ministry said.

The overall death toll from the virus, however, rose by 453 to to 24,275, it said, adding that some of the additional cases were from the previous days. 

The number of diagnosed cases rose by 2,144 from Tuesday to 212,917, the ministry said.

Russia extends entry ban for foreigners over pandemic

Russia on Wednesday extended an entry ban for foreigners to slow the coronavirus as the country registers a steep rise in the number of new infections.

The decree barring foreigners from entering the country, which was introduced in mid-March and set to expire Thursday, was extended until Russia has the virus under control, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said.

"I have signed a government resolution on extending it until the fight against the infection is over and the epidemic situation has improved," he told officials meeting to discuss Russia's response to the pandemic.

Health officials in Russia have registered a steady increase in new coronavirus cases, with more than 99,000 confirmed infections and 972 deaths.

Germany extends warning against travel worldwide to mid-June: minister   

Germany is extending an existing warning against foreign travel until June 14 as curbs remain in place in many countries to stem the coronavirus pandemic, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said Wednesday.

"We have not yet reached the point where we can recommend carefree travel," Maas said, adding "therefore it is necessary to extend the worldwide travel warning until mid-June".

Europe's biggest economy has brought home 240,000 stranded tourists in the last four weeks, Maas said, adding that "we're not going to undertake such an action again in the coming summer".

Senegal launches huge aid scheme amid pandemic

Senegal has shut its borders, banned travel between cities and imposed a strict dusk-to-dawn curfew in a bid to curb the contagion, also mandating mask-wearing in government and commercial sites.

But 40 percent of the country's roughly 16 million people live in poverty, often working in precarious informal jobs, and the restrictions have hit them hard.

Government-chartered lorries have been hauling supplies to the working-class Dakar suburb of Guinaw-Rails, where the first families received the aid on Tuesday.

Individual aid packages are lined up in the backyard of a cultural centre, each containing 100 kilos (220 pounds) of rice and 10 kilos of soap, as well as sugar, cooking oil and pasta.

Iran's death toll reaches 5,957

The death toll in Iran rose by 80 in the past twenty four hours to 5,957, Health Ministry spokesman Kianush Jahanpur said in a statement on state TV.

The total number of diagnosed cases in Iran, one of the countries hardest hit by the outbreak in the Middle East, has reached 93,657, he said.

Russia's coronavirus case up by 5,841

Russia on Wednesday reported 5,841 new cases of the novel coronavirus, bringing its overall nationwide case tally to 99,399.

The official nationwide death toll reached 972 on Wednesday after 108 people with the virus died within 24 hours, Russia's coronavirus crisis response centre said.

Singapore confirms 690 new cases

Singapore's health ministry confirmed 690 more coronavirus infections, bringing the total number of cases to 15,641.

Most of the new cases are among migrant workers living in dormitories in the city-state, which has among the highest number of coronavirus infections in Southeast Asia.

Thailand reports nine cases, no deaths

Thailand reported nine new infections but no deaths, bringing total number of cases to 2,947, with 54 deaths, since the outbreak began in January.

It was the third day that new infections stayed in the single digits, said Taweesin Wisanuyothin, a spokesman of the government's Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration.

Six of the new cases were linked to earlier cases, two had no known links, and the ninth involved a person who tested positive but awaits infection tracing, he added.

Since the outbreak began, 2,665 patients in the Southeast Asian nation have recovered and gone home.

Turkey extends school closure until end of May

Turkey has extended the closure of schools until the end of May as part of its measures to combat the spread of the coronavirus, Education Minister Ziya Selcuk said on Wednesday.

Ankara announced the initial closure of schools on March 12 after it reported its first case of Covid-19 and now has nearly 115,000 cases with a death toll of nearly 3,000.

Selcuk made the announcement at a news conference.

Germany cases rise by 1,304

Germany reported 1,304 more cases as the number of deaths rose by 202 compared to the previous day, data from the Robert Koch Institute for infectious diseases showed.

Europe's most populous country now has a total of 157,641 confirmed cases and 6,115 deaths, according to the tally.

China says Australia playing 'petty tricks'

China accused Australia of "petty tricks" in an intensifying dispute over Canberra's push for an international inquiry into the coronavirus outbreak that could affect diplomatic and economic ties between the countries.

Australian government ministers have repeatedly said China, the country's largest trade partner, was threatening "economic coercion" after its ambassador, Cheng Jingye, said this week that Chinese consumers could boycott Australian products and universities because of the calls for the inquiry.

The head of Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) called Cheng to express concern. The Chinese embassy then released a statement detailing what it said was discussed on the call, prompting another rebuke from DFAT.

On Wednesday, the Chinese embassy returned fire, saying on its website that details of the call had first been "obviously leaked by some Australian officials" and it needed to set the record straight.

"The embassy of China doesn't play petty tricks, this is not our tradition. But if others do, we have to reciprocate," an embassy spokesman said in the statement.

Australia to ramp up testing with millions of new kits

Australia has secured 10 million Covid-19 test kits, Health Minister Greg Hunt said, as Canberra begins widespread testing that it hopes will sustain a decline in new coronavirus cases and allow social restrictions to be lifted.

Australia –– home to 25.7 million people –– has confirmed about 6,700 cases of the novel coronavirus and just 88 deaths, way below figures reported in the US and other hotspots, a result the government attributes to social distancing restrictions and testing.

Authorities plan to expand testing this week to include people who do not show symptoms, a move the government says is vital to allow the easing of restrictions and the reopening of parts of the economy shut down by the outbreak.

Mainland China reports 22 new cases

Mainland China reported 22 new Covid-19 cases for April 28, up from six reported a day earlier, putting its total number of novel coronavirus infections to date at 82,858.

The National Health Commission said in a statement that the number of imported cases involving travellers from overseas rose to 21 on Tuesday from three a day earlier. New asymptomatic cases, involving patients infected with the virus but not showing symptoms, fell to 26 from 40 the previous day.

The total number of deaths in the mainland from Covid-19 remained unchanged, at 4,633.

Mexico's registers 1,223 new cases, 135 deaths

Mexico's health ministry reported 1,223 new known coronavirus cases and 135 new deaths, bringing the total to 16,752 cases and 1,569 deaths.

The government has said the real number of infected people is significantly higher than the confirmed cases.

US coronavirus deaths top Vietnam war toll: tracker

The number of daily deaths from coronavirus rose again in the US, a tally from Johns Hopkins University showed, as the country's total fatalities surpassed those of Americans in the Vietnam War.

Within a 24-hour period up to 0030GMT, there were 2,207 additional deaths, the Baltimore-based university said after the daily toll had fallen to around 1,300 on Sunday and Monday.

The total number of US deaths from new coronavirus has reached 58,351, surpassing the 58,220 figure that the National Archives records as US losses from combat and other causes, including accidents, in the years-long Southeast Asian war.

The US has recorded more than one million Covid-19 cases, about one-third of the entire world's caseload, according to Johns Hopkins data.