Health

GENEVA, April 21 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The World Health Organization insisted that it sounded the alarm on the novel coronavirus right from the very start and had hidden nothing from Washington about the deadly pandemic.

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said there were no secrets at the UN agency after being blasted by the United States for allegedly downplaying the initial COVID-19 outbreak in China.

“We have been warning from day one that this is a devil that everyone should fight,” Tedros told a virtual briefing in Geneva.

TOKYO, April 21 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Japanese medics are warning more must be done to prevent the coronavirus from overwhelming the country’s healthcare system as confirmed cases passed 10,000, despite a nationwide state of emergency.

Experts have been alarmed by a recent spike in COVID-19 infections, with hundreds detected daily.

Japan’s outbreak remains less severe than in hard-hit European countries, but its caseload is one of Asia’s highest after China and India, and is roughly on par with South Korea.

20 April 2020; MEMO: A huge delivery of personal protective equipment (PPE) to the UK from Turkey has been delayed, The New Arab reports.

The substantial delivery of the desperately needed PPE was delayed for “logistical reasons”.

Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government Robert Jenrick claimed in a statement that the shipment would arrive on Sunday, and would include 84 tonnes of supplies including 400,000 surgical gowns for Britain’s National Health Service (NHS).

Mumbai, Apr 20 (PTI) At least 53 mediapersons from Mumbai have tested positive for coronavirus, a city civic official said on Monday.

During a special camp organised at the Azad Maidan here on April 16 and 17 for COVID-19 testing of scribes, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) collected swab samples of 171 mediapersons, including electronic and print media journalists, photographers and cameramen.

Kabul, Apr 20 (AP) At least 20 employees at Afghanistan's presidential palace have tested positive for COVID-19, according to a senior government official who asked to remain anonymous because he was not authorized to comment on the subject.

It wasn't clear whether President Ashraf Ghani had been in contact with any of the employees or whether he had been tested himself. The presidential palace has refused to comment.

Thiruvananthapuram, Apr 20 (PTI) Television, indoor games like carrom and chess for entertainment and even recharge for mobile phones are just some facilities provided for 'guest workers', as migrant labourers are called in Kerala, by the LDF government, setting an example to the rest of the country.

ROME, April 20 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Some 180 migrants rescued at sea will be held in isolation on an Italian ferry off the coast of Sicily, the coast guard said.

Italy has refused to take in saved migrants due to the coronavirus epidemic, saying the outbreak, which has killed over 23,000 people, meant it could no longer be considered a port of safety.

Thirty-four people pulled to safety by Spanish NGO rescue vessel Aita Mari were transferred to the Rubattino ferry, which is anchored outside the port of Palermo and staffed by 22 Red Cross volunteers.

MONTEVIDEO, April 20 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The number of coronavirus infections across Latin America surpassed 100,000 on Sunday with nearly 5,000 deaths, according to official figures reported by individual countries.

Brazil, with a population of 210 million, has the most cases — 38,654 infections and 2,462 deaths — although experts believe the number of infections to be far greater, given relatively little testing.

Based on official figures, Latin America as a whole had 100,952 cases on Sunday, with 4,924 deaths.

SUVA, Apr 20 (NNN-PINA) – Fiji reported its 18th confirmed case of COVID-19, after a 51-year-old woman tested positive for the virus today.

Fijian Prime Minister, Voreqe Bainimarama, said that, the woman, who is from Ba, one of the provinces in the western side of Fiji’s main island of Viti Levu, arrived in Fiji from the United States on Mar 22.

She was cleared after a 14-day self quarantine on Apr 4, but later developed signs of COVID-19 and was subsequently tested again. Contact tracing continued for her since she had been in Fiji for a month.

JERUSALEM, Apr 20 (NNN-MA’AN) – Israel’s Ministry of Health, announced on Sunday, the shutting down of a COVID-19 testing laboratory, because of 19 wrong diagnoses.

The lab, located at the Weizmann Institute of Science (WIS), in central Israel, began operating on Apr 10.

On Apr 17, Assuta Hospital, in southern Israel, said, nine patients, who were admitted to the COVID-19 ward, after being tested positive in the WIS lab, were actually healthy. Similar cases were found in two other hospitals in Israel.