Coronavirus: Spain records biggest case increase in nearly a week as UN warns of ‘tsunami of hate’

More than 3.86 million people have been reported to be infected by the novel coronavirus globally and 270,020 have died, according to John Hopkins University data. The US death toll from coronavirus has now surpassed 75,000 people, the highest globally, followed by the UK with 30,689 deaths. The countries with the next highest numbers of deaths are Italy with 29,958 and Spain with 26,070.

Up to 190,000 people in Africa could die of Covid-19 during the first year of the pandemic if containment measures fail, according to a study by the World Health Organisation (WHO) based on prediction modelling and analysing 47 countries in the region. The organisation also warned that the virus could 'smoulder' on the continent for years.

Meanwhile, the coronavirus pandemic is unleashing a global tsunami of hate and xenophobia, scapegoating and scare-mongering said UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres. The UN chief said anti-foreigner sentiment has surged online and in the streets, anti-Semitic conspiracy theories have spread, and Covid-19-related anti-Muslim attacks have occurred.

Spain

Spain reported 1,095 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, the biggest increase in nearly a week, as the country goes through the first phase of a plan to relax its lockdown after eight weeks of confinement. The total number of cases, adjusted to include changes in data for the Madrid region, rose to 222,857, according to health ministry data. Fatalities rose by 229 to 26,299. That compares with an increase of 213 on Thursday. The government on Friday is set to approve a new extension of the national state of emergency through May 23rd, after parliament authorised it on Wednesday. Prime minister Pedro Sanchez has said that enhanced powers are needed to co-ordinate the country’s health services – under normal circumstances 17 regional governments run health care separately. Barcelona beaches opened for a short window from 6 am to 10 am on Friday to allow people to swim and jog. People paddled on boards and swam in the water under the supervision of police.

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Germany

The number of new coronavirus cases in Germany rose the most in a week, just days after the government declared the first phase of the pandemic to be over.

There were 1,268 additional infections in the 24 hours through Friday morning, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. That is the third day of rising cases and brings the total number to 169,430.

Germany is preparing to open restaurants, hotels and all shops as well as to restart professional soccer games as chancellor Angela Merkel on Wednesday declared some progress in fighting the virus, which so far has caused 7,392 deaths in the country after 117 new fatalities were reported on Friday.

Although many lockdown measures are being gradually phased out, social-distancing rules were this week extended until at least June 5th. To contain hot spots, Dr Merkel also insisted on a threshold on local infection rates. Restrictions will be reinstated if an area records more than 50 new cases per 100,000 inhabitants in a week.

European leaders are feeling the pressure to accelerate a return to normality and are trying to walk a fine line between reactivating the economy and avoiding a renewed outbreak. France on Thursday joined Germany, Italy and the Netherlands in easing restrictions as Europe’s economic pain from the fallout of the coronavirus intensifies.

France

France reported 178 new coronavirus deaths on Thursday, a fall from 278 the previous day, and saw its number of patients in intensive care drop under 3,000 for the first time since late March. The health ministry said 25,987 people were now confirmed to have died from the virus in hospitals and nursing homes. The French prime minister, Edouard Philippe on Thursday, said the country's border will remain closed for the "foreseeable future" except for absolutely essential professional or family reasons and trans-border workers, and they will still need to carry an international declaration. Although restrictions will be eased in some areas, in the capital and the four adjoining regions - Ile-de-France, Hauts-de-France, Grand Est Bourgogne-Franche-Comte - which comprise the "red zone", public parks and gardens will remain shut.

UK

The UK’s contact-tracing appmust not be rolled out until the government has increased privacy and data protections, a parliamentary committee has said, as rights groups warn that the current trial is unlawful under the Data Protection Act. The joint committee on human rights said it was essential legislation was enacted to ensure the mass surveillance of personal data did not result in a violation before the trial was expanded. The app, which is being trialled on the Isle of Wight, logs users’ movements and can alert people if they have had contact with someone who has developed symptoms.

Italy

Deaths from Covid-19 in Italy climbed by 274 on Thursday, against 369 the day before, the Civil Protection Agency said, while the daily tally of new infections declined marginally to 1,401 from 1,444 on Wednesday. The total death toll since the outbreak came to light on February 21st now stands at 29,958, the agency said, the third highest in the world after the US and UK. The number of confirmed cases amounts to 215,858, the third highest global tally behind the US and Spain. People registered as currently carrying the illness in Italy fell to 89,624 from 91,528 the day before. There were 1,311 people in intensive care on Thursday, down slightly from 1,333 on Wednesday and maintaining a long-running decline. Of those originally infected, 96,276 were declared recovered against 93,245 a day earlier. The agency said 1.564 million people had been tested for the virus against 1.550 million the day before, out of a population of around 60 million.

Russia

The number of new coronavirus cases in Russia rose by 10,699 over the past 24 hours, bringing the nationwide tally to 187,859, the coronavirus crisis response centre said on Friday. It also reported 98 new fatalities from Covid-19, bringing the total death toll in Russia to 1,723.

Australia

Australia will ease social distancing restrictions in a three-step process, prime minister Scott Morrison said on Friday, as Canberra aims to remove most curbs by July and get nearly 1 million people back to work amid a decline in coronavirus cases.

Australia in March imposed strict social distancing restrictions, which coupled with the closure of its borders, are credited with drastically slowing the number of new infections of Covid-19, the disease caused by the virus. With fewer than 20 new infections each day, Mr Morrison said Australian states and territories on Friday agreed a road map to remove most of the curbs. Australia has had fewer than 7,000 confirmed cases of Covid-19 and fewer than 800 people are still sick with the disease. Almost 100 people have died.

Brazil

Brazilregistered 9,888 new cases of coronavirus and 610 deaths on Thursday, the country’s health ministry said. That brought the ministry’s total to 135,106 confirmed cases in Brazil, with 9,146 deaths from the Covid-19 respiratory disease - the most deadly outbreak in an emerging market nation.

Mexico

Mexico’s health ministry on Thursday reported 1,982 new confirmed cases of coronavirus infections and 257 additional fatalities, its most lethal day. The new figures bring the total number of confirmed cases to 29,616 and 2,961 deaths.

US

In the US, some governors are disregarding or creatively interpreting White House guidelines in easing their states' lockdowns and letting businesses reopen. An Associated Press analysis found 17 states appeared to have not met one of the key benchmarks set by the White House for loosening up — a 14-day downward trajectory in new cases or positive test rates. Worries over future waves of infections reflect the difficulty of fighting a disease that leaves many of those infected with scant or no symptoms, even as thousands lose their lives to pneumonia and other virus-related illness. US president Donald Trump and vice president Mike Pence have tested negative for the new coronavirus after a member of the US military who works at the White House as a valet came down with the virus. This week, University of Washington researchers nearly doubled their projection of deaths in the US to about 134,000 through to early August, largely because the loosening of stay-at-home restrictions will mean the virus spreads to more people. As governments grapple with when to restart their economies, the Trump administration shelved a 17-page Centres for Disease Control and Prevention document with step-by-step advice to help local authorities do it safely. Adding to pressure to ease restrictions are the hundreds of businesses collapsing by the day. Over 33 million Americans have applied for unemployment benefits over the past seven weeks, and a highly anticipated report on Friday is expected to show US joblessness as high as 16 per cent, a level not seen since the Great Depression nearly a century ago.

South Korea

South Korea’s 13 fresh cases reported on Friday were its first increase higher than 10 in five days. A dozen were linked to someone who visited three nightclubs in Seoul last weekend. “A drop of ink in clear water spreads swiftly,” vice health minister Kim Gang-lip said, urging vigilance to guard hard-won gains. “Anyone can become that drop of ink that spreads Covid-19.” After its caseload waned from hundreds a day to a handful daily in recent weeks, South Korea has relaxed social distancing guidelines, scheduled school reopenings and allowed professional sports to resume without fans in the stands.

China

In China, where coronavirus first emerged, authorities reported 17 new virus cases on Friday, including 16 that tested positive but were not showing symptoms. No new deaths have been reported for more than three weeks, and just 260 people remain in hospital to be treated for Covid-19.– Reuters, PA, Guardian, Bloomberg