Coronavirus: the state of the world facing the pandemic Sunday, April 12

Text by: RFI Follow

The 10,000 dead mark is reached in the UK when Boris Johnson left the hospital. "We will defeat the coronavirus," he says. The fight could well continue and the end of the confinement will not be "a lamp that is rekindled", but gradual, experts say.

Publicity

The coronavirus epidemic in France " continues dynamically " and killed 14,393 in France, said Sunday the Directorate General of Health in a statement. For the fourth consecutive day, the number of patients in intensive care registered a decrease in 24 hours, " from 35 patients only, it is therefore a very slight decrease ", however underlines the DGS.

Emmanuel Macron plans to extend the confinement until at least after May 10, according to his entourage. For his speech Monday, the president is also expected on a method to restart the country after the confinement, which is starting to have an effect on the number of serious cases.

But the pressure remains strong on hospitals where patients continue to flock, even if the number of patients in intensive care continues to decrease.

The aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, forced to shorten its mission in the North Atlantic because of coronavirus on board, docked this Sunday in Toulon, its home port. 1,900 sailors were landed and placed in solitary confinement.

In addition to the isolation of the military, the army plans to disinfect all buildings and aircraft, " to allow them to recover their full operational capacity as soon as possible , according to the Ministry of the Armed Forces.

A clandestine Easter mass was held at night at the traditionalist church of Saint-Nicolas-du-Chardonnet in Paris, in the presence of the faithful. The priest was fined for breach of confinement.

French Minister of Agriculture Didier Guillaume calls on the European Union to take "urgent" measures to help the milk market in the face of the surpluses caused by the crisis. Europe produces too much milk and prices have dropped since the closure of restaurants and canteens in Europe.

Spain: deaths on the rise

The number of deaths in 24 hours rose this Sunday in Spain to 619, after three consecutive days of decline Yesterday, this figure had risen to 510. The total death toll rose to more than 17,000. In total, the number of confirmed cases is 166,019 while the number of people cured is 62,391.

The 47 million Spaniards have the right to leave their homes only to go to work if telework is not possible, buy food, get treatment or take their dog out. Any walk or sporting activity outside them is prohibited.

For the Spanish Minister of Tourism, " it is very important that health recommendations are maintained during the summer, hand washing and social distance ... Even on the beaches, " said Reyes Maroto.

Italy: Pope advocates "contagion of hope"

Pope Francis gave his traditional Urbi et Orbi blessing on Easter Sunday inside an empty Saint Peter's basilica. 70,000 faithful came to listen to him and greet him in the open air last year.

The faithful were able to follow him on Mondovision or on the internet. The pope called to respond to the pandemic with the "contagion of hope" and urged the rich countries to beware of any selfishness towards the poorest.

Italy with 19,468 deaths for 152,271 cases is the most affected country in the world after the United States. The number of daily deaths continues to decline. 431 additional deaths were recorded Sunday against 619 the previous day, the lowest toll since March 19

UK: Boris Johnson returned home

Boris Johnson is back home. " The Prime Minister has left hospital to continue his recovery at Checkers ", his residence in north-west London, said a spokesperson. " On the advice of his medical team, (he) will not immediately resume work ."

He made his first official statement this morning since his hospitalization. " I can never thank enough " NHS staff, he said, " I owe them my life ." The UK will " defeat the coronavirus ".

According to the latest assessment by health authorities, the country has almost 10,000 patients who died in hospital.

Avoid the second wave

The British government is announcing an additional £ 200 million (€ 227.6 million) to developing countries to fight the pandemic, to prevent a second fatal wave from hitting the UK.

“ The coronavirus knows no boundaries. We can only effectively protect the British if we help developing countries to strengthen their health systems , "said Minister for International Development Anne-Marie Trevelyan.

Poland: prayer via Skype

The impossibility of gathering for Easter Mass opens up new ways of praying collectively. Our reporter Thomas Giraudeau met a French-speaking priest who offers a moment of remote prayer , via Skype, with some of his followers.

Bulgaria: mandatory masks

The Orthodox churches will be open for Easter. Both the clergy and the government refused to impose strict confinement. As of this Sunday, wearing a mask is compulsory. Bulgaria has more than 600 cases and 24 deaths

United States: the 20,000 dead mark is exceeded

The Trump administration makes May 1 its target date for easing containment measures. It admits that there is no guarantee that this objective will be achieved.

Doctor Fauci, adviser to the president warns however: the end of confinement in the United States will not be like “ a lamp that is lit , the return to normal will be gradual. It is necessary to study the disparities of the pandemic on the territory between the big metropolises and the rural zones ”. The measures decided will therefore not be the same for everyone, says Dr. Fauci.

He said he was optimistic about a decline in the epidemic, especially in New York State, the epicenter of the disease with more than 8,500 deaths, or almost half of the deaths recorded in the country (20,614).

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo holds his daily press conference. The number of deaths has stabilized but remains very high (758 during the last 24 hours). Hospitalizations and intubations are more numerous.

Bikes reign supreme in these pandemic times on the streets of New York. Bicycle repairers and sellers have been classified as essential activities and have remained open since the start of containment.

Colombia: a telethon to help the most disadvantaged

The town hall of Medellin organizes a series of events to invite Colombians to make donations (the Donaton) by bank payment or by depositing a donation in the trucks that crisscross the city. Informal work is widespread in the country. The containment implemented from March 20 to April 27 puts thousands of families at risk.

Colombia currently has 100 dead and more than 2,700 sick.

Nicaragua: full churches despite the contrary advice of the Church

Nicaraguans come out to celebrate the tradition of Holy Week encouraged by the government of Daniel Ortega despite opposition from the church.

But other residents prefer to remain confined to their homes, observe the celebration from afar and are wary of official figures, which report only nine cases including one death.

These two opposite positions are a new illustration of the political crisis in the country and the tensions between the government and the Catholic Church.

Iran: fewer new cases

Iran announces 117 deaths which bring the official toll of the epidemic in the country to 4,474. Tehran reports a decrease in the number of new daily cases to 1,657 people in the past 24 hours.

India: admitting wrongs in writing

Indian police are innovating to punish ten foreign tourists who have violated the confinement in the north of the country.

Travelers from Israel, Mexico, Australia and Austria were arrested while walking through the streets of a city at the foot of the Himalayas. They were then forced by the police to write " I did not follow the rules of confinement, I am sorry ".

This Sunday, India recorded 273 deaths from the coronavirus among 8,300 cases of contamination.

Fear of a new wave

China appeared to have stemmed the epidemic but 99 new cases are diagnosed this Sunday, more than double the day before. Only two are local transmissions. 97 new cases are therefore imported, which raises fears of a second wave of contamination.

These sick people are Chinese nationals returning to the country. 52 were diagnosed in Shanghai.

The official death toll in China is now 82,052 people infected since the start of the epidemic and 3,339 dead.

Malaysian hair salons remain closed

Hairdressers will not open their doors as authorized by law. They were among the professions concerned by the release measures proposed by the authorities. The Malaysian Hairdressers Association refused, assuring that 90% of them preferred to stay closed for safety.

More than 4,000 cases have been diagnosed in the country. A hundred patients have died.

Maintain calm in conflict zones

How is the global health crisis expressed in countries at war and what can be the consequences? Arnaud Jouve makes an inventory in crisis zones on rfi.fr. He concludes his article with this encouraging comment from the international Crisis Group: " Natural disasters have sometimes calmed conflicts, when rival parties have been forced to cooperate, or at least to maintain calm, to focus their attention on the protection and reconstruction of their societies ”.

Our selection on SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus

• Listen to Coronavirus Info , daily chronicle on the pandemic

• Explanation: The origins of the Covid-19

• Analysis: What strategies in the face of the Covid-19 epidemic?

• Practical questions:
→ What is the lifespan of the virus ?
→ How do you treat Covid-19 patients ?
→ Update on ongoing clinical trials
→ How the Institut Pasteur hopes to find a vaccine
→ How to make a mask and use it well

• Doctors' answers to your questions about the Covid-19

Find all our articles, reports, chronicles and programs on the coronavirus by clicking here .

See also our contents on containment .

Newsletter With the Daily Newsletter, find the headlines directly in your mailbox

Follow all international news by downloading the RFI application

• Coronavirus