Corona worldwide toll crosses 243,000

ISLAMABAD: More than 243,004 people have died worldwide since Covid-19 pandemic surfaced in China in December, as some countries are easing restrictions due to reduction in coronavirus cases, while in some countries the virus is still playing havoc and deaths are increasing.

According to international media reports, in all, more than 3.4 million cases have now been reported in 195 countries and territories.

In the United States, which has the highest toll, 66,621 people have died. Italy is the second hardest-hit country, with 28,710 dead, followed by the United Kingdom with 28,131, Spain 25,100 and France 24,594.

The coronavirus death toll in the United States climbed by 868 in a single day, bringing the total number of fatalities to over 66,000. There are more than 1.14 million cases in the country.

More than a dozen states let restaurants, stores or other businesses reopen Friday in the biggest one-day push yet to get their economies up and running again, acting at their own speed and with their own quirks and restrictions to make sure the coronavirus doesn’t come storming back.

Russia reported 9,623 new cases of coronavirus on Saturday, its highest daily rise since the start of the pandemic, bringing the total to 124,054, mostly in the capital Moscow, where the mayor threatened to cut the number of travel permits.

The death toll nationwide rose to 1,222 after 57 people died in the last 24 hours, Russia’s coronavirus crisis response centre said, after revising the previous day’s tally.

Russia has been in partial lockdown, aimed at curbing the spread of the novel coronavirus, since the end of March. In Moscow, people who have not obtained a special permit for free movement, are only able to leave their homes to shop, walk their dogs and dispose of garbage.

President Vladimir Putin has ordered the restrictive measures, called non-working days, to continue until May 11 inclusive, when the country finishes celebrating the Labour Day and Victory Day holidays.

Despite a relatively low number of cases and deaths compared to the United States, Italy and Spain, which have been hit hardest by the disease, Russia’s infection curve has not reached a plateau.

Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin issued an appeal on Saturday to Muscovites to continue to self-isolate. He said the number of critically ill patients is rising, but not as steeply worst-case scenario projections.

He said about two percent of Moscow residents -- or more than 250,000 people -- have the coronavirus.

"According to screening tests of various population groups, the real number of the infected is around 2 percent of Moscow´s total population," Sergei Sobyanin wrote on his blog.

The United Kingdom's COVID-19 death toll rose 621 to 28,131 as of May 1, just short of Italy which has had the deadliest novel coronavirus outbreak among European countries.

"Sadly of those tested positive for coronavirus... 28,131 have now died," housing minister Robert Jenrick told reporters at a Downing Street briefing. "That's an increase of 621 fatalities since yesterday."

Italy reported a death toll of 28,710.

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany rose by 945 to 161,703, data from the Robert Koch Institute for infectious diseases showed on Saturday. The death toll rose by 94 to 6,575. Spain´s nearly 47 million people, under strict lockdown since March 14, are allowed outside for walks or sport.

Many restrictions remain however. In towns of more than 5,000 inhabitants, children and the elderly cannot leave home at the same times.

The repatriation of Europeans who found themselves outside the EU when borders closed as part of national lockdowns is almost complete, said the head of European diplomacy Josep Borrell.

South Korea reported six more cases of the new coronavirus on Saturday, bringing the nation's total infections to 10,780, according to Yonhap news agency. It marked the fourth day in a row for the new daily infections to stay in the single digits.

France on Saturday decided to extend a health emergency imposed to fight the new coronavirus for two months until July 24, Health Minister Olivier Veran said.

A proposal to be put to parliament on Monday said the lifting this month of the emergency, which began on March 24, would "be premature" and "could see a risk of the outbreak" intensifying.

Iran said Saturday there was a "clear drop" in the number of new coronavirus infections as it reported 802 fresh cases, the lowest daily count since March 10.

The new cases brought to 96,448 the number recorded in Iran since it announced its first cases in mid-February.

"This shows a clear drop in the number of new infections compared to recent weeks, despite our active testing," health ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour said on state television.

He added that 77,350 of those hospitalised have since been discharged, claiming it is a "one of the highest recovery percentages in the world."

New deaths from COVID-19 rose slightly to 65 in the past 24 hours, reaching a total of 6,156, Jahanpour said.

Doubts have been cast over Iran´s coronavirus figures by experts and officials both at home and abroad.

Iran´s deputy health minister Iraj Harirchi warned that the fall in the number of infections could quickly reverse.

"I emphasise that this steady decline is fragile," said Harirchi, who has himself recovered from COVID-19.

Singapore said it will gradually ease some restrictions aimed at limiting the spread of the coronavirus as community-spread infections have decreased.

Pet food stores and hair salons will be allowed to re-open from May 12 and some students will be allowed to return to school in small groups a week later. But migrant workers living in dormitories will be required to stay indoors until June 1 as hundreds of new cases are reported in the crowded facilities each day.

Hong Kongers flocked to country parks and the city´s outlying islands over a long holiday weekend, even as regulations limiting gatherings to four people remain in force.

Long queues were seen outside shops and restaurants that openly support the city´s pro-democracy movement, which helped bring the financial hub to a standstill during months of civil unrest last year.

The Philippines released nearly 10,000 prison inmates as the country races to halt coronavirus infections in its overcrowded jails.

Social distancing is all but impossible in the country´s prison system, where cells are sometimes filled to five times their capacity due to inadequate infrastructure and an overburdened judicial system.

Malaysia recorded 105 new cases on Saturday in the biggest rise in over two weeks.

Much of the country remains under a partial lockdown, with people only allowed to leave their homes to carry out essential tasks.

Authorities detained large numbers of undocumented migrants in a series of Friday raids that a rights group said could trigger a Sri Lanka said it would hold celebrations for a key Buddhist festival next week without public crowds to prevent the spread of the virus.

Low-key ceremonies will begin tomorrow (Monday) to mark Vesak, the commemoration of Buddha´s birth, enlightenment and death.

Public sermons by monks will be broadcast live while the usual giant lanterns and coloured lights will not be on display, as the country remains under curfew.

Meanwhile, the United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said the fatality rate for over 80-years-old coronavirus-hit people is five times the global average, as he launched a new policy initiative to address this and many other challenges faced by the elderly, during and after the biggest public health crisis to hit the world in a century.

“Our response to COVID-19 must respect the rights and dignity of older people,” he said while releasing the report.

Against the backdrop of age discrimination, autonomy for older people, disparities in social protection and healthcare - as well as a lack of decision-making power - he maintained that for older persons, the crisis is exacerbating existing human rights protection gaps and socio-economic challenges.

“We need to stand up now for older person’s rights,” the UN independent expert on the enjoyment of all human rights by older persons, Rosa Kornfeld-Matte, had said.

Pervasive gerontophobia, the fear of age-related self-degeneration and death, nurtures prejudice against older people, discrimination and ultimately the denial of human rights in older age. “As an older person myself, with responsibility for an even older mother, I am deeply concerned about the pandemic on a personal level, and about its effects on our communities and societies,” the UN chief shared.

At the same time, he pointed out that older people contribute immeasurably to their families and communities commonly sacrificing their own well-being to care for others, including helping with children and grandchildren: “Our COVID-19 response must be cognizant of all of these matters and must respect the rights and dignity of older people.”

“No person, young or old, is expendable,” Guterres said.