Coronavirus: the state of the world facing the pandemic on Tuesday, April 28

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How to gradually reduce the containment measures without causing an increase in contamination? This is the delicate equation that many countries are facing this Tuesday, April 28, when the coronavirus pandemic has killed more than 210,000 people worldwide, of which more than 85% in Europe and the United States.

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• The deconfinement plan unveiled in France

This Tuesday, French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe presented to the National Assembly the plan of the French government for a gradual deconfinement from May 11. "  If the indicators are not there, we will not deconfinate  " on this date, however, warned the head of government. Edouard Philippe notably addressed the question of masks, screening, the reopening of classes and shops, cultural events and transport. He said that a "  new stage  " would open on June 2, for three weeks, with new measures "  which will depend on the level of the epidemic  ". Subject to a vote by deputies, the government plan was approved by 368 votes to 100.

► Read also: What to remember from the deconfinement plan presented by Edouard Philippe

Still in France but far from the metropolis, Tahiti and Moorea, will see their containment reduced from this Wednesday. Confined since March 20, French Polynesia lists only 58 cases of Covid-19, mainly concentrated on the two main islands, and has no deaths.

France has registered 367 additional deaths in 24 hours, bringing the total to 23,660 deaths since March 1. The number of people in intensive care, on the other hand, continues the decline observed for more than two weeks, with 221 patients less in the last 24 hours.

• Signs of worsening in Germany

Signs of the epidemic are worsening in Germany, when the country has just started deconfinement and Chancellor Angela Merkel is worried about a too rapid return to normal. The infection rate (or reproduction rate) has again reached the threshold of 1.0, according to the Institute responsible for monitoring the development of the pandemic in the country. This means that each patient infects another person. Germany has 156,337 cases with 5,913 deaths. In this context, wearing a mask is made compulsory from Wednesday in all shops in Berlin, a measure already taken by all other German regions.

• Spain keeps its deconfinement plan

The Spanish government fixed this Tuesday the roadmap of the “ progressive  ” deconfinement  of the country which will be done by “  phases  ” until “  end of June  ”, announced its Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez. The country's general confinement, the strictest in Europe, was already slightly relaxed on Sunday with the authorization for children under 14 to walk. It must still be on Saturday May 2 with the possibility of doing sport alone outside or of walking among members of the same household. The schools will remain closed until September, with the exception of upgrading activities or for children under 6 whose two parents cannot telecommute, said Pedro Sanchez. By the end of the process, travel will be allowed for the Spanish only within their province while the use of the mask will be "  highly recommended  " especially in public transport, he added. said.

Spain recorded Tuesday 301 deaths from the new coronavirus pandemic, a figure down from Monday's assessment and bringing the total number of deaths to 23,822, the Ministry of Health announced. 

The Greece announces progressive decontainment from May 4 The Portugal will lift from its May 3 state of emergency, which led since March 19 closing all shops and non-essential services to try
to stop the spread of Covid 19. Portugal had Tuesday near 1,000 deaths and just over 24,000 cases of Covid-19 disease.

• A minute of silence in the UK

In homage to the caregivers who died from the Covid-19, the British observed a minute of silence on Tuesday. At 11 a.m. local time, the country froze in memory of the 82 caregivers and 16 social workers who had died in recent weeks. A moment of meditation observed in particular by Prime Minister Boris Johnson, in his official residence at 10 Downing Street where he officially returned to work this week after being sick with Covid-19.

The Russia is considering a gradual exit from the containment of May 12, according to President Vladimir Putin. However, still according to the latter, the country has not yet reached its epidemic peak.

• Over one million people infected in the United States

The United States crossed the mark of one million people infected on Tuesday. This represents about a third of the total number of cases worldwide, according to the Johns Hopkins University count. The United States is, already since the end of March, the country which has the most cases detected of infection. The country is also the country with the highest number of victims of Covid-19, with more than 57,200 deaths.

In the absence of a sufficient drop in hospitalizations due to Covid-19, New York State maintains strict measures. Governor Andrew Cuomo has announced that he will extend containment measures "  in many areas of the state  " beyond May 15, although plans to reopen the construction and manufacturing sectors are planned. less affected areas. The governor justified his caution by a number of hospitalizations and new cases which is falling less quickly than expected (with 337 deaths in the last 24 hours).

• Strong progression of the virus in Brazil

While new infections are decreasing in Europe and the United States, the epidemic is progressing rapidly in Brazil. The country of 210 million inhabitants recorded more than 300 deaths in 24 hours, an increasing trend. Two months after the first case of coranavirus appeared, Brazil had more than 4,500 deaths. The peak of the epidemic is not expected until next month. The hospitals in São Paulo are saturated, according to testimony it is a real obstacle course to find a place in the intensive care unit. And the images coming from the city of Manaus in the Amazon continue to cause great emotion in the country. Authorities carried out burials in mass graves yesterday Monday as the number of deaths - 140 in total - no longer allowed for individual funerals.

In Haiti , President Jovenel Moïse assured Monday that the order for medical equipment, placed at the end of March by his government to deal with the epidemic of new coronavirus, will arrive "  between May 1 and 15  ".

Read also: Faced with the absent state, Haiti is trying to organize

• Prolonged state of emergency in Egypt

In Egypt, the state of emergency is renewed for three months in a "  critical security and health situation  " in the country, engaged in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic. The country has officially registered 4,782 cases of contamination with the new coronavirus, including 337 deaths. Established in 2017 following deadly attacks claimed by the Islamic State group against Coptic churches, the state of emergency was in effect for three years without interruption. Emergency legislation significantly expands police powers over arrest, surveillance, and may impose restrictions on freedom of movement.

In Iran , 1,112 new cases of infection have been recorded in the past 24 hours, according to health authorities. At the same time, the country experienced 71 additional deaths, or 5,877 in total.

• Kim Jong-un careful?

Is it to protect himself from Covid-19 contamination that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un did not attend the official ceremonies on April 15? This is the assumption made by the South Korean Minister for Unification. The absence of the leader during these ceremonies has fueled speculation about his state of health.

Unicef ​​warns that as soon as the pandemic is contained, South Asia will have to resume its vaccination campaigns interrupted by Covid-19, because the health of "  hundreds of thousands of children  " is threatened. The United Nations Children's Fund notes that Bangladesh and Nepal have stopped measles and rubella vaccination campaigns, while Afghanistan and Pakistan have stopped polio vaccination while the disease is endemic in these two countries.

Finally, the International Labor Organization (ILO) calls on companies, some of which are preparing to reopen after several weeks of confinement, to respect protective measures against coronavirus in order to avoid a new wave of contamination. "  The application of occupational safety and health measures is essential to both protect the lives of workers, their families and the populations around them, ensure work continuity and economic survival,  " noted the director. General of the ILO, Guy Ryder.

Our selection on SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus

• Listen to Coronavirus Info , daily chronicle on the pandemic

• Explanation:  The origins of the Covid-19

• Analyzes:
→  What strategies to face the epidemic ?
→  A vaccine, the only solution to stem the pandemic?
→  What impact on conflict zones?

• Practical questions:
→  What is known about the mode of contagion
→  What results for ongoing clinical trials?
→  How to make a mask and use it well

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

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

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