Coronavirus: the state of the world facing the pandemic on Friday, May 15

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The Covid-19 pandemic has killed more than 300,000 people worldwide and nearly 4.5 million cases of infection have been officially diagnosed in 196 countries and territories. The race for the vaccine is accelerating and deconfinement continues.

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• Emmanuel Macron strongly apostrophied by the caregivers

"  Blur, pèze, cool: we want money!"  " Visiting the Paris hospital La Pitié-Salpêtrière , President Emmanuel Macron has been strongly challenged by health care staff. They are still waiting for the bonus promised at the end of March by the head of state. In response, Emmanuel Macron spoke of the need to "  put an end  " to the "  impoverishment  " of the hospital, and acknowledged a "  mistake  " on the reform of the health system initiated two years ago.

Unexpected consequence of the crisis, the services responsible for the fight against drugs estimate that the confinement has caused a decrease in drug trafficking between 30 and 40%, according to the Minister of the Interior Christophe Castaner. We also learn that the number of people killed on the roads fell sharply in April, by 55.8%. One hundred and three people died on the roads, 133 less than in April 2019.

The Covid-19 epidemic has caused 104 new deaths in 24 hours in France, bringing the total to more than 27,529 deaths since March 1. The number of patients in intensive care continues to drop, with 2,203 serious cases and a negative balance of 96 patients compared to Thursday, said this Friday the Directorate General of Health.

• Disturbing mortality in British retirement homes

New statistics released on Friday are worrying in the UK: more than 12,000 retirement home residents have died of coronavirus in two months in England and Wales. The government promises to test all residents of retirement homes in England by early June.

Ryanair announces the loss of 250 administrative jobs due to the drop in activity. The redundant positions concern its offices in Dublin, Stansted near London, Wroclaw in Poland and Madrid in Spain.

• Saint Peter in Rome to reopen its doors to tourists

After being completely disinfected, the Basilica of Saint Peter in Rome will reopen its doors to tourists on Monday. Like the rules laid down for the country, religious celebrations with the public are also authorized in the famous basilica, even if none is planned for the moment. The Italy identifies additional 242 deaths due to the new coronavirus, 20 fewer than the previous day, and the number of new infections also decreased, to 789 against 992 Thursday.
The balance sheet since the start of the epidemic stands at 31,610 deaths, according to the Civil Protection Agency. The number of confirmed cases reaches 223,885.

The Spain begins to monitor foreigners arriving at its airports. We take their temperature and we ask them to observe a quarantine of 14 days. The country's two largest cities, Madrid and Barcelona, ​​will in turn benefit from some of the strictest containment in the world. These are the cities most affected by the pandemic, which has already killed 27,459 people in the country, including 138 in the past 24 hours, according to the Ministry of Health. The number of confirmed cases exceeds 230,000.

The health crisis halted the economic recovery in Portugal , which saw its GDP fall by 3.9% in the first quarter of 2020 compared to the last three months of 2019. This estimate is published by the National Institute of Statistics (INE) . Tourism, which generated 8.7% of GDP last year, was particularly affected.
Portugal is expected to experience a 6.8% recession this year. In 2019, the country posted growth of 2.2% while tourism accounted for almost a fifth of national exports.

Germany is also in economic difficulty . It confirms a 2.2% drop in activity in the first quarter, with an expected decline of 6.3% for the whole year.

• Norwegians encouraged to spend their holidays in Norway

Norway maintains its official recommendation not to travel abroad until the end of August and calls on its citizens to plan their holidays in the country. "  Take advantage of this summer vacation to discover even more this fantastic destination that is Norway,  " said Prime Minister Erna Solberg at a press conference. The country seems to be controlling the epidemic, with a number of new hospitalizations and very low deaths for several weeks. A total of 8,197 cases have been officially recorded there, including 232 fatal.

For the first time since March 13, Denmark has seen no deaths from the virus in the past 24 hours. The balance sheet of the epidemic thus remains at 537 dead.

• Austrian theaters to be able to reopen

In Austria , the government announces the gradual reopening of performance halls from May 29. Theaters and concert halls can accommodate up to 100 spectators, respecting strict standards of social distancing. The gauge will then be enlarged to 250 people on July 1, when the cinemas will also reopen, and up to 1,000 people on August 1. This morning, the Secretary of State for Culture resigned following criticism from the opposition and the cultural sector. The Austrian coalition government between conservatives and environmentalists has set up an aid plan for cultural professionals, but it is deemed to be very insufficient by its beneficiaries.

The Czech Republic , where the contamination rate is one of the lowest in Europe, announces that it will allow gatherings of up to 300 people later this month. These rallies, which include sporting events, will be possible from May 25, when restaurants and bars can also reopen, said Health Minister Adam Vojtech. This country of 10.7 million inhabitants has 8,352 cases, of which 293 have been fatal.

• Vladimir Putin calls not to relax

The Russian remains the second largest in number of infections. In the past 24 hours, 10,598 new cases have been identified there, bringing the official total to 262,843 and 2,418 dead, as Moscow begins a new massive testing campaign . At a new videoconference meeting devoted to the epidemic, Vladimir Putin called on the authorities not to relax. "  The number of specialized hospital beds in the regions must be maintained at the highest level,  " he ordered, referring to the 148,000 places currently in existence.

• Brazil's health minister resigns, New York remains confined

In Brazil , Minister of Health Nelson Teich has resigned less than a month after taking office. Brazil is becoming one of the main centers of the epidemic in the world. Nelson Teich has already expressed his disagreements with President Bolsonaro, who has regularly downplayed the epidemic and criticized the restrictions decided at the state level. Brazil records its highest increase in cases (13,944) for a total of 202,918 infections and 13,933 deaths.

In the United States , New York, epicenter of the epidemic with more than 20,000 dead, will remain confined until at least June 13, according to a new decree of the governor of the state Andrew Cuomo. The authorities refuse to commit to the resumption of schools in September. For now, the metropolis of 8.6 million inhabitants is far from meeting the criteria necessary to gradually revive the economy, namely the continuous decline in the number of hospitalizations, people in intensive care and positive tests for coronavirus . While elsewhere in the United States, protests have increased against containment, many New Yorkers adhere to the caution of their leaders. Especially since more than 80 children in the city have suffered from rare pediatric inflammation, probably linked to the virus.

• Chinese, Americans in vaccine race

China's foreign ministry has responded to Donald Trump's threat yesterday to break the Sino-US trade deal. "  Stable bilateral relations between China and the United States are in the interest of both
countries,  " he said. Relations between Beijing and Washington have deteriorated as a result of the US President's multiple criticisms of China's handling of the pandemic.

While the American president is optimistic about a vaccine by the end of the year, "  perhaps before  ", the Chinese authorities announce that the country now has five experimental vaccines tested on humans, and that "  the progress is well underway  ”with doses already inoculated to 2,500 volunteers.

• Alert in Rohingya refugee camps in Bangladesh

The Bangladesh authorities are on the alert after the discovery of contaminations in the population of Rohingya refugee camps. Almost one million members of this Muslim minority live in extreme poverty. The detection of Covid-19 among the refugees raises fears of "  a nightmare scenario  ," warns Daniel Sullivan of the NGO Refugees International, in the absence of intensive care units in the camps. Bangladesh currently has 300 deaths from the virus in nearly 19,000 cases. National confinement has been in effect since March 26.

• The number of contaminations jumps in Iran

Iran reports more than 2,100 new cases, the largest increase in the number of infections in more than a month. The virus has killed 6,902 people in the country, including 48 in the past 24 hours. The southwest province of Khuzestan remains red. Other provinces, including Lorestan, Sistan-Baluchistan and eastern Azerbaijan (northwest) could also find this highest level of alert. The Ministry of Health urges the inhabitants of these regions to respect health protocols.

• The world of sport in the starting blocks

While Russia decides to restart its football championship behind closed doors on June 21, the football world is in turmoil on the eve of the resumption of the German championship. The matches must resume this Saturday, behind closed doors, but will be televised. Players will be exempt from masks, but coaches will not. Other European championships are watching this recovery with interest. Can the Italian one really resume on June 13, as desired? The players are back in training but divided in the face of a very strict protocol. The Belgian Federation meanwhile decided this Friday not to resume the championship. The French Federation had already decided in the board of directors a classification which crowns the PSG champion. The Belarus championship is the only one in Europe that has not been suspended.

High-level athletes gradually resume training despite a sports calendar emptied of its deadlines. "  Do not rush, take the time to recover from confinement and re-athletize  ", warns the national technical director of French athletics Patrice Gergès.

Our selection on the coronavirus

• Listen to our daily chronicle  Coronavirus info

• Our  explanations  :
→  What we know about the mode of contagion
→  Disparities and inequalities in the face of the coronavirus: what must be remembered
→  Triple therapy, Discovery… update on research
→  The race for the vaccine is in full swing
→  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 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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