Italy 10 Mar 2020
- Italy imposes national travel restrictions over virus fears
- Germany announces the first two deaths in the country due to the virus
- Asian and European stocks nosedive over rise in COVID-19 cases, oil price plunges
- Germany reports 210 new cases, bringing the total to 1,112, up from 902 reported on Sunday
- Mainland China reports no new locally transmitted coronavirus cases outside the epicenter of Hubei province for the second day running.
- 00:00 This concludes our live updates on the coronavirus outbreak for the moment. More information on the outbreak is available on our page and on DW TV. Thank you for joining us
23:55 Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has announced that the country’s top-flight Serie A soccer league, along with all sporting events in the country, will be suspended until April 3 as the country grapples with the spread of the novel coronavirus.
22:50 US President Donald Trump told reporters that coronavirus has “blindsided the world” and that he will ask congress for tax relief.
22:40 A fifth person in the UK has died from complications linked to coronavirus. The patient was over 70 years old and had several ongoing health conditions, the hospital where they were being treated said in a statement.
21:55 France’s culture minister has contracted coronavirus, a government colleague has confirmed.
21:45 Burkina Faso has confirmed its first two cases of coronavirus, becoming the sixth country in sub-Saharan Africa to report the presence of COVID-19.
21:20 As part of new, nationwide restrictions to contain coronavirus, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has halted all sporting events in the country. “There’s no reason for the games to continue,” he said. “The fans will have to deal with it. We won’t even allow gyms to be used.”
21:15 Under the new restrictions, school closures in Italy have been extended to April 3. The prime minister criticized young people for using the time to gather for parties. “This night life…we can’t allow this anymore,” Conte said.
Pubs, restaurants, and cafes throughout the whole country are now required to close at sundown.
21:10 Nationwide travel restrictions imposed in Italy will last until April 3. “There won’t be a red zone,” Conte told reporters, referring to recent restrictions imposed on large parts of northern Italy. “There will be Italy” as a protected area, he said.
21:05 Under the new safety measures in Italy, all people in in the country are forbidden from traveling outside the areas where they live unless they can demonstrate a need to work or some other reason for travel.
20:47 Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte says lockdown measures will be extended across the whole of Italy as of Tuesday. The ongoing coronavirus outbreak has killed hundreds in the European country.
20:44 Two US lawmakers from the Republican party, Doug Collins and Matt Gaetz, said they were going into self-quarantine after being exposed to the new coronavirus at February conference. Both of them had contact with US President Donald Trump in recent days.
20:42 US regulators have issued warnings to seven companies that have sold soaps, sprays, and other products that falsely claim they will treat COVID-19 or prevent people from catching the virus.
20:37 The president of Portugal, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa was tested for coronavirus with the results coming back negative, according to the politician himself. However, Rebelo De Sousa said he would continue “working from home, even though it was negative, until the fifteen days are up.” The head of state said he was isolating himself to serve as an example for other Portuguese citizens.
19:59 France’s culture minister, Franck Riester, has tested positive for the coronavirus. His office said he is “doing fine” and staying at home in Paris. Riester had recently visited French parliament, where five cases were confirmed earlier, prompting him to undergo a test.
19:54 Seven prisoners in Italy have died during riots in jails nationwide over government measures to contain the outbreak. Italian prisoners protested or rioted in at least 23 prisons across the country, with inmates holding guards hostage in one prison, and others escaping another prison. Inmates are angry over restrictions on family visits, while others are fearful of the new virus in crowded penitentiaries. The Justice Ministry later on Monday said the situation was under control.
19:27 Guatemala will take steps to prevent people infected with the coronavirus to cross the border with Honduras, said Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei. The statement comes as a new migrant caravan is about to leave Honduras and head across Guatemala to the US.
“We’ll take everyone’s temperature and anyone who arrives with a (coronavirus) symptom won’t be allowed in,” the president said. “We will instantly expel them.”
19:26 Florida officials correct travel alert after saying all international travelers should self-isolate. A revised statement now urges only travelers coming from China, Iran, South Korea, and Italy to go to self-quarantine, while people arriving from other impacted countries should monitor their health.
18:58 All schools in Madrid will be closed for the next 14 days to curb the spread of coronavirus, according to Spanish media.
18:36 A cruise ship carrying over 20 people infected with the new coronavirus has entered the San Francisco Bay. Some 3,500 people in total are on board the Grand Princess, which has been prevented from docking since Wednesday. Under strict supervision, the passengers are now expected to disembark and be transported to military bases in California, Texas, and Georgia, where they will stay in quarantine for the next 14 days.
18:32 Ireland has now canceled all St. Patrick’s Day parades across the country, said Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, following reports that the central event in Dublin was called off.
18:20 Canada reports its first coronavirus death.
18:02 Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has canceled his speech set to mark Persian new year over the outbreak.
17:59 Iraqi travelers will be ordered to stay at home after returning from China, Iran, Italy, Japan, Thailand, Singapore, Kuwait, Bahrain, and South Korea, with medics monitoring their condition.
17:52 Israel will require quarantine for all citizens returning from abroad, said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. It would also only admit foreign nationals if they can prove that they have the means to self-quarantine, according to local media.( DW com )
