Coronavirus: the state of the world facing the pandemic Sunday May 3

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The pandemic has killed 243,637 people worldwide since its onset in December in China, more than 85% of which in Europe and the United States, according to a latest report by AFP based on figures from official sources. , admitted as largely undervalued.

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While many countries have started to ease containment, 4.6 billion people are still being asked to stay at home or are subject to movement restrictions.

Deconfinement in France: the date of May 11 is not absolutely certain

The pressure on resuscitation services continues to ease in France, with 51 fewer patients with Covid-19 in the past 24 hours, the Ministry of Health announced on Saturday. The virus has killed 166 people in the past 24 hours, far from the hundreds of daily deaths just a few weeks ago .

Warning of a loosening of compliance with containment measures, the Minister of Health, Olivier Véran stressed however this Sunday in an interview with the Parisian / Today in France that the date of May 11 chosen to initiate the deconfinement of the France could be called into question if the number of new patients were to be too high .

"  If the confinement is respected until the end, the lid will have been put on the pan of the epidemic, and we will be able to gradually deconfinate under the best conditions  ", explained Olivier Véran. "  Otherwise, and if the number of new patients should be too high, the date of lifting of confinement could be questioned and will be appreciated by the departments,  " he added.

► Also read: Coronavirus: what quarantine for those entering France?

Repeated hand washing, wearing of a mandatory or recommended mask, staggered recreations: very strict hygiene rules govern the health protocol, published this Sunday, which will govern the reopening of schools from May 11 .

Before arriving at school, parents are invited to take their child's temperature and keep it at home if they have a fever. The arrival and the departure to the school can be spread out over time, the objective being to "  limit the crossings between pupils of different classes or different levels  ".

Classrooms should be organized so that there is a distance of at least one meter between tables, including the teacher's desk. This principle must be able to be applied in all contexts and spaces (arrival and surroundings of the school, recreation, corridors, covered playground, school catering, toilets ...). In the second stage, it is recommended to favor the displacement of teachers rather than that of students, and therefore to allocate a room to a class.

For personnel, the health authorities recommend wearing an anti-projection mask, also called a " general public  " mask  . The barrier gestures must be applied "  permanently, everywhere and by everyone  ".

Finally, manual exchanges of balloons, toys, pencils, etc. must be "  avoided or accompanied by disinfection procedures after each use  ". As for recreations, they must be organized by group of classes, taking into account the recommendations relating to distance and barrier gestures.

Coronavirus: Europe continues its deconfinement

With further easing planned for the beginning of the week in fifteen countries, Europe is gradually starting to deconfinite its populations. The Spanish will be able to go to the hairdresser this Monday, under conditions: one client per salon, and by appointment. Bars and restaurants also raise their curtains, but only for take-out.

In several regions of Germany, schools are gradually reopening their doors. But the mask remains mandatory in transport and in stores in German cities which have already resumed their activities since April 20.

Austria, Belgium, Portugal and the Scandinavian countries are also easing their restrictions. Poles and Croats can go to the museum, as can Slovenians and Hungarians, who can also have lunch and have coffee on the terrace this afternoon. As for Italy, cloistered for two months by the pandemic, it awaits with feverishness the partial lifting of restrictions this Monday.

Italy is preparing for deconfinement

The number of deaths due to Covid-19 in Italy increased by 174 Sunday, against 474 the day before, said the Civil Protection Agency, posting the lowest daily death toll since March 10.

Subject to strict confinement since March 9, the Italians are preparing for the entry into force of a whole series of easing measures on Monday, after having suffered the brunt of the epidemic, which has claimed the lives of nearly 29 000 people in the peninsula , especially in Lombardy, in the north of the country.

"  Don't let your guard down. Phase II begins. We must be aware that this will be the start of an even greater challenge  , "warned the head of the cell responsible for responding to the pandemic, Domenico Arcuri, recalling that"  the relative freedom  "that the Italians would win on Monday would be called into question in the event of a restart of the contagion.

Reopening of the parks while maintaining distance, possibility of visiting family and meeting in limited numbers, limited trips within the municipality of residence and linked only to work and health requirements, take-out for bars and restaurants ... the new rules are eagerly awaited by Italians.

Portugal limits the occupancy rate of its planes

Portugal has decided to limit the occupation of planes to two-thirds of their capacity in order to respect social distancing between passengers while its national company TAP will resume its first international flights on Thursday.

This limit, which comes into force on Sunday, "  guarantees an appropriate distance between passengers and ensures their safety  ", specifies the decree published in the official journal. However, the decree provides for exceptions, in particular for flights providing for repatriation operations.

Russia : record number of infections

The number of cases reported in Russia has increased sharply in recent days. This Sunday, the country recorded for the first time more than 10,000 new cases, reports our correspondent Étienne Bouche . It should be noted that Russia has intensified screening: according to official information, nearly 4.2 million tests have been carried out.

Moscow and its region continue to concentrate more than half of the reported cases of contamination. The mayor of the capital, Sergei Sobianin, wrote on his blog on Saturday that about 2% of Muscovites were infected with Covid-19. This would bring the number of cases to a level much higher than that recorded. The municipality announced this weekend that a temporary hospital was being built in a pavilion of the VDNkh, a huge exhibition center dating from the Soviet Union.

The period of unemployment established at the end of March by Vladimir Putin has been extended until May 11, the official date - for now - of the end of confinement. Vladimir Putin will address the nation on the 9th, day of victory over Nazi Germany. The president is expected to announce new measures that will govern the lives of Russians for the next few weeks.

Vaccination of millions of children threatened

Millions of children in the Middle East and North Africa are at risk of not being vaccinated against polio and measles because of the Covid-19 pandemic, which disrupted vaccination campaigns, warns UNICEF.

United States: protests for the "  reopening of America  ", Pompeo charges Wuhan

In the United States (more than 66,000 deaths), despite daily daily reports, more than 35 of the 50 states have started to lift or are about to lift their containment measures, in order to revive the economy. Protests for the "  reopening of America  " are increasing across the country.

In the meantime, the virus is hitting American prisons, their 2.3 million detainees and their guards. "  Right now, it's hell,  " sums up a contaminated agent from Marion prison, in the State of Ohio, of which more than 80% of the 2,500 prisoners and 175 prison staff tested positive.

► Read also: “Cancel Rent”: faced with the Covid-19 crisis, Americans start the rent strike

In addition, the American chief of diplomacy Mike Pompeo affirmed this Sunday that there was a “  significant amount of evidence  ” that the Covid-19 comes from a laboratory of the Chinese city of Wuhan , cradle of the pandemic.

"  China is known for its propensity to infect the world and use substandard laboratories  ," said the US secretary of state on ABC. "  It is not the first time that the world has been endangered by viruses from Chinese laboratories.  He also said he regretted the lack of cooperation from the Chinese authorities to shed light on the origin of the pandemic.

Deconfinement also in Asia

In Asia, Thailand plans to reopen restaurants, hairdressers and stadiums at the start of the week. South Korea announced on Sunday a relaxation in the coming week of social distancing measures. Meetings of certain professional sports, including baseball and football, will resume there in the coming days behind closed doors.

Charity and virtual concert in India

Nearly a hundred Indian artists and celebrities, as well as some great American stars, participated in a large 4-hour virtual concert, broadcast on Facebook on Sunday . Objective: to raise funds for the fight against Covid-19 and the economic crisis caused by the confinement in the country.

From their living room, bedroom or improvised studio, Indian celebrities have sang Bollywood classics, more intimate songs in honor of Indian doctors, or, like the immense percussionist Zakir Hussein, a percussion solo in charge of emotion, reports our correspondent Sébastien Farcis . Indian film stars like Katrina Kaif participated, highlighting the actions of associations that help victims of the coronavirus. Will Smith and Mick Jagger have also appeared. All virtual performances ended with an invitation to the public to make a donation.  

Between 50 and 60,000 people followed this event at the same time. Some 150,000 euros have so far been raised on this donation platform, which remains open for three months. This money will benefit a hundred associations working in three areas: information on the virus, the funding of protective equipment and hospital care, as well as the support of the millions of daily workers who suffered severely from the cessation of the Indian economy . 

Our selection on the coronavirus

• Listen to our daily chronicle  Coronavirus info

• The practical questions  :
→  What is known about the mode of contagion
→  disparities and inequalities in coronaviruses: what to remember
→  What outcomes for clinical trials?
→  A vaccine, the only solution to stem the pandemic?
→  How to make a mask and use it well

• Our series  : "  The response, country by country  "

• Each evening, find the State of the world and Africa facing the pandemic

• See also the files of RFI Savoirs on Covid-19:
→  Birth of a pandemic
→  Everyday life put to the test
→  The history of epidemics
→  Science facing Covid-19
→  Geopolitical consequences

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