Coronavirus latest: Donald Trump dismisses concern over virus spreading in the White House
- Germany’s Robert Koch Institute has reported 933 new cases and 116 deaths
- Tesla CEO Elon Musk said the carmaker’s automotive plant will resume operations in defiance of official orders
- US President Donald Trump has revealed Mike Pence tested negative for COVID-19 after the vice president’s press secretary contracted the virus
- Mosques in Iran are set to open temporarily on Tuesday, to make room for Ramadan prayer services
Updates in Universal Coordinated Time (UTC/GMT)
03:33 Germany has reported 933 new cases, bringing the total number of confirmed infections to 170,508, according to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI). The death toll also rose by 116, bringing that figure to 7,533.
03:13 South Korea has reported 27 new cases over the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of infections to 10,936. Many of the new infections were linked to nightclubs in Seoul, where health workers are now trying to track down and test thousands of people who visited clubs in the capital. The country’s death toll stands at 258.
03:03 France has repatriated more than 150 Europeans who were stranded in Central America.
The passengers included 57 French and 18 Germans citizen, according to French ambassador to Panama Brice Roquefeuil. The emergency flight also included Italian, Dutch and Spanish citizens. The passengers were flown out of Panama and Honduras.
A second flight is scheduled for Wednesday.
02:29 Japan’s health ministry is expected to approve the first antigen, or antibody coronavirus testing kits, on Wednesday, a health ministry official said.
The move is part of an effort to boost the number of diagnostic tests available. Japan has 15,777 confirmed cases of the virus and a total death toll of 633.
Here is the latest from Latin America:
In Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro has declared that gyms and hair salons could stay open as essential businesses, despite a new surge in cases and deaths.
Brazil registered 5,632 new cases on Monday and 396 deaths from the virus, according to its health ministry. The country now has over 163,000 confirmed cases and a death toll of 11,625.
Mexico’s coronavirus death toll rose by 108, to 3,573 in total, while its number of confirmed cases rose by 1,305 to 36,327. The new figures mark a continuing decline in the country’s daily death toll since Thursday, when 257 fatalities were reported.
The new count follows claims made by a group representing Mexican pharmacy owners that people have been picking used surgical face masks out of the trash and reselling them.
Face masks are frequently sold individually on the street by unlicensed vendors, and masks have become a much sought-after item amid the pandemic, with reports of shortages and price increases. The Mexican Pharmacy Owners Union subsequently advised people to cut their masks up before throwing them away.
In Uruguay the crew of another virus-hit ship, the Australian-owned Greg Mortimer, will be allowed to disembark to quarantine in hotels, the government said. Dozens of crew on the ship, which was expected to dock in Montevideo, have been infected with the coronavirus. The country has 707 confirmed cases and a death toll of 19.
The number of Guatemalan deportees who tested positive for coronavirus after a flight from the US has reached 71. Vice Minister of Health Erick Munoz told congressmen that 71 of the 76 deportees from an April 13 flight had tested positive. The government temporarily suspended deportation flights from the US following the first positive cases from the flight. Guatemala has 1,052 confirmed cases and a death toll of 26.
The number of confirmed infections in Chile passed 30,000, making it the fourth most infected Latin American country after Brazil, Peru and Mexico. Chile’s health undersecretary, Paula Daza, said the number of infections was 30,063 and the death toll was 323, according to daily newspaper La Tercera.
01:49 China has reported just one new infection as re-opening measures gathered pace.
Beijing middle school senior students have returned to class and Shanghai Disneyland has opened its gates once more, albeit to a limited number of visitors.
Read more: Closed, canceled, downsized: Coronavirus hits Chinese culture
01:41 Tesla CEO Elon Musk has announced that the automaker’s California assembly plant will be resuming operations, in defiance of official orders trying to curb the spread of COVID-19.
“Tesla is restarting production today against Alameda County rules,” Musk tweeted. “I will be on the line with everyone else. If anyone is arrested, I ask that it only be me.”
The Tesla Factory in Fremont, California
01:19 The Bundesliga returns this coming Saturday, albeit behind closed doors, and German fans are being warned to not congregate near the grounds.
Authorities have said matches could be halted if too many supporters gather outside the stadiums.
The Bundesliga is the first among Europe’s top leagues to resume following the outbreak after two months of inaction. Other soccer federations will be closely monitoring progress in Germany, in the hope that they too can resume in the coming weeks.
01:09 US President Donald Trump said that his administration has ”met the moment” and ”prevailed” on coronavirus testing. Trump told reporters that everyone who wants a test can get one, although officials later clarified that he was referring to everyone who ”needs” a test.
The briefing followed reports that two White House staffers were infected with the novel virus. A subsequent order now means employees must wear masks when working in the West Wing, where the presidential office is located.
Trump also confirmed that Mike Pence had tested negative. The vice president took the test after his press secretary tested positive for COVID-19.
The daily briefing came to an abrupt halt after Trump had an argument with an Asian-American reporter. CBS News reporter Weija Jiang asked Trump why he insisted that the US was doing better than other countries when it came to testing for the virus.
Trump replied: “They’re losing their lives everywhere in the world. And maybe that’s a question you should ask China. Don’t ask me, ask China that question, okay?”
“Sir, why are you saying that to me specifically?” she said.
“I’m saying it to anybody who would ask a nasty question like that,” Trump said.
00:54 India will reopen selected passenger trains on its giant railway network starting today after more than seven weeks of lockdown. Some 15 trains will run from the capital New Delhi, to other cities. The trains will also make return journeys at full capacity.
The Indian Railways announced a series of guidelines for passengers, including wearing a face mask, and installing the government’s contact tracing app, Aarogya Setu, on their phones. The announcement was made on the same day India recorded its biggest jump in coronavirus infections. The country has recorded 67,152 cases in total, with 2,206 perishing from the virus so far.
India’s train network, which carries 20 million passengers daily, was shut in late March to prevent the virus from spreading.
00:14 All mosques in Iran are set to open temporarily on Tuesday, to make room for Ramadan prayer services, the official IRIB news agency reported.
The decision, which marks another step in the government’s efforts to ease restrictions, would allow for mosques to stay open for three days, commemorating specific nights of the holy month, IRIB quoted Mohammad Qomi, the director of the Islamic Development Organization as saying.
It was unclear if the mosques would remain open or not following the temporary opening, according to the Fars news agency. Iran is the Middle East’s hardest-hit country, with over 109,000 confirmed cases and a reported death toll of 6,685.
00:00 Catch up on yesterday’s coronavirus news here: Hard-hit Europe eases restrictions
In reporting on the coronavirus pandemic, unless otherwise specified, DW uses figures provided by the Johns Hopkins University (JHU) Coronavirus Resource Center in the United States. JHU updates figures in real-time, collating data from world health organizations, state and national governments and other public official sources, all of whom have their own systems for compiling information.
Germany’s national statistics are compiled by its public health agency, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI). These figures depend on data transmission from state and local levels and are updated around once a day, which can lead to deviation from JHU.
lc, adi/jsi (AFP, AP, dpa, Reuters)