Cyprus Mail 15 March 2020 - Cyprus Mail
14. 23 Dutch government to do ‘everything it takes’ to keep KLM going
The Netherlands will do “everything it takes” to keep Air France-KLM and Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport operating in the wake of the coronavirus epidemic, Dutch Finance Minister Wobke Hoekstra said on Sunday.
Hoekstra’s comments came after KLM, the Dutch arm of carrier Air France KLM, announced on Friday a package of emergency measures. The airline said it would cut up to 2,000 jobs, trim spending by as much as 400 million euros ($444 million) and scrap at least 40% of flights in coming months.
14. 23 French finance minister says no shortages of essential goods
France’s Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said on Sunday there was no shortage of grocery products and urged people to continue their food shopping as usual despite the introduction of tougher measures to tackle the spread of coronavirus.
“There are no shortages of essential goods and there won’t be as long as everybody acts responsibly,” Le Maire said in a news conference. “Continue to shop like before.”
France has shut down cafes and restaurants, but food stores remain open and food deliveries are also allowed.
14.21 Greece imposes partial travel ban
Greece said on Sunday it would ban road and sea routes, as well as flights, to Albania and North Macedonia, and ban flights to and from Spain to stem the spread of the coronavirus.
It extended travel restrictions to Italy, saying it was banning passenger ship routes to and from the neighbouring country, excluding cargo.
Greece had three fatalities from the disease and 228 confirmed cases by late Saturday.
14.11 Danish corona-hit firms get state aid to pay 75% of salaries
Denmark’s government told private companies struggling with drastic measures to curb the spread of coronavirus that it would cover 75% of employees’ salaries, if they promised not to cut staff.
Under the three-month aid period that will last until June 9, the state offers to pay 75% of employees’ salaries at a maximum of 23,000 Danish crowns ($3,418) per month, while the companies pay the remaining 25%.
“If there’s a big drop in activity, and production is halted, we understand the need to send home employees. But we ask you: Don’t fire them,” Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said told a news conference on Sunday.
14.05 Czech Prime Minister eyes nationwide quarantine, expects rise in coronavirus cases
Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis said on Sunday the government would likely declare a quarantine for the entire country to fight the coronavirus outbreak.
The cabinet was expected to meet on Sunday afternoon with a news conference expected at around 6 p.m. (1700 GMT).
13.25 Turkey quarantines thousands of pilgrims returning from Saudi Arabia
Thousands of Muslims returning to Turkey from a pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia were being taken into quarantine on Sunday due to concerns about the spread of the coronavirus, Turkish officials said.
Television pictures showed buses transporting pilgrims along the highway from Ankara’s airport to the city as part of an operation to place those returning into student dormitories.
Turkey, which has only diagnosed six cases of coronavirus, has ramped up measures to halt its spread in recent days, closing schools and universities, holding sports events without spectators and halting flights to many countries.
13.10 Irish PM mulls coronavirus restrictions on pubs after outcry
The Irish government is considering imposing restrictions on pubs and nightclubs due to coronavirus, after videos of singing in packed bars in the capital on Saturday sparked a social media campaign to close them down.
Ireland, which has 129 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and two deaths, closed schools and universities last week and advised people to cancel all indoor gatherings of 100 people or more.
12.44 Iran’s death toll reaches 724
Iran’s death toll from the new coronavirus has reached 724, with 113 new deaths in the past 24 hours, an Iranian health official tweeted on Sunday, adding that some 13,938 people have been infected across the country.
“In the past 24 hours, 1,209 new cases have been confirmed … with 113 deaths in the past 24 hours, the death toll has reached 724,” Alireza Vahabzadeh, an adviser to Iran’s health minister, tweeted.
12. 23 Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque shut
Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque and Dome of the Rock will shut their doors until further notice, religious authorities said on Sunday, in a move to protect worshippers at Islam’s third holiest site.
Prayers will still be held on the huge open area around the two shrines and other Muslim prayer sites on the sacred compound known to Muslims worldwide as al-Haram al-Sharif, or The Noble Sanctuary, and to Jews as Har ha-Bayit, or Temple Mount.
12.13 UK will have power to order people to quarantine
Britain will have the power to force people to quarantine if necessary as part of its strategy to fight coronavirus, Health Secretary Matt Hancock told BBC television on Sunday.
“We are going to take the powers to make sure that we can quarantine people if they are a risk to public health,” he said. “I doubt we will need to use it very much because people are being very responsible and people need to be responsible.”
11. 47 Despite virus, France votes
French voters headed to the polls on Sunday for local elections after the government decided to press ahead with the vote despite a rapid acceleration of the coronavirus across the country.
Voters are set to choose mayors for 35,000 town halls and almost half a million councillors in a vote overshadowed by the coronavirus outbreak.
11.46 Austria imposes major movement restrictions
Austria introduced major restrictions on movement in public places on Sunday, urging Austrians to self-isolate, banning gatherings of more than five persons and putting further limits on who can enter the country.
The restrictions on public movement would come into force on Monday, while restaurants were ordered closed from Tuesday, when new entry restrictions would also take effect, a government spokesman said.
“Austrians are being summoned to isolate themselves,” Chancellor Sebastian Kurz’s office said in a statement. “That means only making social contact with the people with whom they live.”
11.24 Jordan confirms six new cases
Jordan confirmed six new cases of coronavirus on Sunday, including four French tourists and two Jordanians, the minister of health said.
The kingdom had previously reported only one case of the virus. It imposed measures on Saturday to fight the outbreak, including a tighter lockdown that closes all borders and bans all incoming and outgoing flights as of Tuesday.
10.53 Indonesian president to be tested
Indonesian President Joko Widodo said on Sunday he would get tested for coronavirus, while some of his ministers had also undergone precautionary tests after the Southeast Asian country’s transport minister tested positive for the disease.
Widodo also suggested people work from home and avoid mass gatherings, as he sought to calm rising concerns about the spread of the virus in the sprawling archipelago.
Indonesia, the world’s fourth most populous country, reported on Sunday the number of infections had risen by 21 to 117. Five people with the virus have died in the country.
10.37 Cases in India rise to 107
India on Sunday reported that the number of coronavirus infections had risen to 107, an increase of 23 from the day before, with a western state home to the country’s financial capital the worst hit.
Data from India’s federal health ministry showed that there were now 31 confirmed coronavirus cases in Maharashtra state, where local authorities have closed down schools, colleges and malls in most cities, including in the financial hub of Mumbai.
10.33 Russia suspends train services
State-run Russian Railways said on Sunday it would halt trains to and from Ukraine and Moldova from March 17 in an attempt to contain the coronavirus outbreak, TASS news agency reported.
Russia, which has so far recorded 59 cases of the virus, said earlier this week that it would suspend most flights to and from Europe over the coronavirus.
10.19 Virus forces closure of all French ski resorts
All French ski resorts are closing on Sunday and will not reopen for the rest of the season as a result of the coronavirus outbreak, ski resort operators said, dealing another heavy blow to a France’s tourism industry.
“The ski season ends today,” Domaines Skiables de France, which group’s the country’s resort operators, said on Twitter. “Holiday-makers and professionals, we’re all passionate about skiing and must face up to the seriousness of the situation.”
08.53 Coronavirus delays Netanyahu’s corruption trial
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s corruption trial was delayed on Sunday for two months, until May, due to the coronavirus crisis.
Israel’s Justice Ministry said the trial, due to have opened on March 17 with the reading of an indictment against Israel’s longest-serving leader in three graft cases, would begin on May 24 “due to developments related to the spread of the coronavirus“.
Netanyahu has denied any wrongdoing in the investigations.
08.51 Australia imposes self-isolation
Australia will impose 14-day self-isolation on international travellers arriving from midnight Sunday and ban cruise ships from foreign ports for 30 days, mirroring restrictions in nearby New Zealand aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced the new measures after a meeting with a newly formed national cabinet, dubbed the coronavirus ‘war cabinet’.
08. 29 Thailand reports 32 new coronavirus cases
Thailand reported 32 new coronavirus cases on Sunday, bringing the total infections in the Southeast Asian country to 114, health officials said.
It was the biggest daily jump in cases in Thailand, which was one of the first countries outside China to report coronavirus infections that has since swept much of the world
07. 55 Mainland China reports 20 new confirmed cases on March 14
China tightened checks on international travellers arriving at Beijing airport on Sunday, after the number of imported new coronavirus infections surpassed locally transmitted cases for a second day in a row.
China, where the epidemic began in December, appears to now face a greater threat of new infections from outside its borders as it continues to slow the spread of the virus domestically. Over a hundred countries have reported infections.
Mainland China reported 20 new cases of infections on March 14, up from 11 cases a day earlier, data from by the National Health Commission (NHC) showed on Sunday.
