From Europe to Australia, passing through countries that have remained skeptical for a long time, the world is on high alert against the emerging Corona virus, while Italy has become the country that pays the highest price in Europe. At a time when Israeli media said that the Mossad intelligence agency was able to bring 100,000 units of corona virus testing to Israel, it appeared in China with a light of hope, as no new cases of local origin were recorded.
To counter what the World Health Organization has described as an "enemy of humanity" that has infected about 210,000 people and claimed more than 9,000 lives, and threatens to plunge the world into recession, he announced hundreds of billions in aid in Europe and the United States.
It seems that European stock markets welcomed these steps and recovered slightly yesterday after deteriorating in the past days.
Italy is the European country that pays the highest price on the old continent, with the death toll approaching 3000 people, while it seems that the epidemic has not yet reached its "peak".
A week after the start of the implementation of the measures of general isolation, Italy recorded the day before yesterday the death of 475 people in 24 people, in the most dangerous outcome recorded in one country, and even the Chinese numbers at the height of the disease in Wuhan exceeded its first focus.
At this pace, Italy, with a total of 2978 deaths yesterday, could advance China (3,245 deaths), becoming the country with the highest number of deaths recorded.
Yesterday, China did not announce any infection of its local origin, in a precedent since the epidemic that started in this country began in December. The authorities reported 34 additional injuries coming from abroad.
Disturbing silence
In Spain, the authorities announced a new toll that would speak of the death of 767 people, an increase of 30% within 24 hours, with the number of injuries exceeding 17,000, according to the latest toll from the Ministry of Health.
The Coruna virus caused the first death in sub-Saharan Africa, in Burkina Faso. WHO Director Tiedros Adhanom Gherbriosos said Africa should "wake up" and "prepare for the worst."
The virus crosses the physical and social frontiers. The European Union's chief negotiator for Brexit Michel Barnier announced that the tests had confirmed his infection with the virus, but he appeared comfortable with his health.
For its part, the Iranian authorities announced a new death toll of the virus, which amounted to 1284 people, registering 149 additional deaths from the previous figures, but the figures announced by the Iranian Deputy Minister of Health Ali Reza Raisi also indicate a slowdown in the increase in the number of infected people, which amounts to 18 thousand and 407 throughout The country.
Iran is preparing to release about 10,000 prisoners under an Iranian New Year amnesty on Friday 20 March in order to "reduce the number of prisoners, given the sensitive situation in the country," which is the third in the number of deaths.
He announced the first death in Russia as well, and the first injury in Fidji.
For its part, Britain, where the number of deaths has exceeded 100, has ordered the closure of schools as of today. More than 850 million young people, nearly half of the world's students and students, have closed their schools, says the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
To try to limit the spread of the virus, restrictions on freedom of movement have been stepped up, and Australia and New Zealand have tightened border restrictions.
According to an AFP tally, more than half a billion people in the world are staying with their homes.
"The only thing that worries me is silence," said 80-year-old Italian Romero Vechera. We do not hear noise. When we go out for walks and hear steps behind us, we get scared and turn anxious. ”
The Italian authorities announced that the isolation measures "will be extended upon their termination" on April 3 as scheduled.
As for France, it begins its third day of isolation, while the center of Paris is more like a ghost town after it was crowded with pedestrians.
The Israeli Ministry of Health said that the number of Corona virus infections in Israel was 529, with 96 new cases diagnosed.
For its part, Israeli media revealed that the Mossad intelligence service managed (Wednesday and Thursday) to bring 100,000 test units for the Corona virus to Israel.
Just as their Spanish and Italian neighbors did in the past days, the French from their balcony, the night before last, saluted the medical personnel in the first row to fight the virus. I heard salutations in the streets of Paris, Lyon and Marseille at 19:00 and again at 20:00.
In Berlin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel called on her citizens to implement the recommendations for limiting mobility, stressing that "it is imperative to save lives."
German Defense Minister Ingret Kramp-Karnbauer announced, at a press conference, the work to mobilize a portion of the army's reserve soldiers to counter the outbreak of the new Corona virus, and that 2,300 reservists and 900 "reserve soldiers working in the health field" complied with the first call at the end of last week.
Elsewhere in the world, the borders of Israel and the borders between the United States and Canada will be closed, after other countries have made a similar move.
Hemp for stress management
To relieve psychological stress and bear stone or voluntary isolation, Canadians and tourists have been flocking for days to shops and sites specialized in the sale of cannabis, a light drug that has been allowed to sell since the end of 2018 in Canada.
"Some people feel panic, others do not care, and I decided to come to deal with psychological stress by using cannabis," said Michel Benoit in Montreal.
And the economic world is gradually stopping. General Motors and Ford announced the suspension of their car production in North America. The United States stopped immigration by suspending the issuance of visas from "most countries of the world" except for the necessary cases.
The future of aviation is threatened
Europe is closing in on itself to fight the emerging Corona virus, which has caused more deaths than recorded in Asia, and prompted the European Central Bank to provide a quick response with a 750 billion euro aid plan, and French President Emmanuel Macron to launch a call for "financial solidarity".
The International Labor Organization has warned that the epidemic threatens 25 million jobs worldwide in the absence of a coordinated international response.
For his part, the executive director of the German "Lufthansa" company, Carsten Spoor, warned yesterday that the aviation sector will need government assistance to ensure its continuity in the event of the Corona crisis, after his company stopped more than 90% of its flights.
"The longer the crisis lasts, the more difficult it will be to ensure the future of the aviation sector in the absence of government assistance," he said in a statement detailing the 2019 annual results published last week.
The epidemic has led to a decline in stock exchanges in the world, prompting the authorities to release billions in economic aid. In this context, the European Central Bank announced the allocation of 750 billion euros to buy back public and private debts.
President Macron welcomed these measures and called on European Union countries to make "budget interventions". Macron said, "It is our duty, European countries, to be present through budget measures and greater financial solidarity in the eurozone," stressing that "our peoples and economies need this."
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One million young people, nearly half of the world's students and students, have closed their schools.
- Germany announces work to mobilize a portion of the reserve soldiers in the army to counter the outbreak of the Corona virus.