By The Associated Press

GLOBAL RESPONSE

The latest news from around the globe on the COVID-19 pandemic

Mar 13, 2020 | 9:14 AM

SPAIN

Spain’s leader says he is declaring a state of emergency for two weeks, a measure that will let him “mobilize all resources,” including the military, to contain sharp rise in coronavirus cases.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez made the televised announcement Friday as health authorities confirmed Spain has more than 4,200 infections, with nearly half of those in Madrid. That was an increase by a third compared to one day earlier. So far 120 patients have died.

Sanchez says the special measure allows the government to limit free movement, legally confiscate goods and take control of industries and private facilities, including private hospitals. Authorities can also order measures to ensure food supply and the country’s industrial output.

He says “it’s an emergency that affects the life and health of all. The government is going to protect all citizens,” warning that cases could skyrocket to more than 10,000 next week.

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SWITZERLAND

Switzerland’s president says the Alpine country is reintroducing controls along its borders, expanding the ban on public events and closing all schools until April 4.

President Simonetta Sommaruga said Friday the government is also urging citizens to avoid using public transport to combat the spread of the new coronavirus.

The ban on public events will be expanded to include those with more than 100 participants. Bars, restaurants and clubs will only be allowed to have 50 people at any time.

The Swiss government is also offering 10 billion Swiss francs in emergency aid to companies affected by the measures.

GERMANY

Germany’s hardest-hit county, Heinsberg on the western border with the Netherlands, has requested help from the country’s military to bolster its laboratory capacity and speed up testing.

Heinsberg has recorded 553 confirmed cases of the new coronavirus, or about a quarter of the country’s total.

Asked whether the military would consider calling up reservists, Arne Collatz, a defence ministry spokesman, said that this was a possibility but added that “we are far away from that.”

Meanwhile, the German military has purchased 300,000 protective masks and goggles for 126 million euros as part of the government’s effort to procure urgently needed medical material.

UNITED STATES

The U.S. Department of Defence says it’s temporarily shutting down all schools on continental European military facilities as a precaution against the spread of the COVID-19 virus, affecting tens of thousands of students.

Department of Defence Schools spokesman Stephen Smith told The Associated Press on Friday the closures as of Monday would affect 63 elementary, middle and high schools in Germany, Belgium, Spain and the Netherlands, and likely Ankara, Turkey.

Three schools in Britain will remain open for the time being, he said.

In all, some 27,000 students attend the Defence Department schools in Europe, Smith said. Schools in Italy, and also Bahrain, have already been closed down.

The schools will be closed through the April break and then the situation will be reassessed, he said.

Starting next week, a distance learning plan, already in use for the students in Italy and Bahrain, will be implemented in Europe.

UNITED KINGDOM

The English Premier League has been suspended after three clubs put their entire playing squads in self-isolation because of coronavirus.

The league had expected to continue with a full schedule this weekend with fans, but later decided to suspend all matches until April 3 “at the earliest.”

The same suspension applies for the three lower divisions overseen by the English Football League and to England’s top two women’s divisions.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta tested positive for COVID-19, leading to the cancellation of the match against Brighton on Saturday. Chelsea winger Callum Hudson-Odoi also had a positive test on Thursday, while Everton said Friday that a player had reported symptoms and said its squad was self-isolating.

ITALY

Italy has welcomed a team of Chinese medical experts and 31 tons of ventilators, protective masks and other medical equipment as its fight against coronavirus turns a nation that usually donates aid into one that receives it.

Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio and the head of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent, Francesco Rocca, were on hand Friday to welcome the Chinese delegation at Red Cross headquarters in Rome. Di Maio, the only one not wearing a protective mask, said Italy is now reaping the benefits of its solidarity with China, where the virus that is now a worldwide pandemic broke out late last year.

Italy is the epicenter of the outbreak in Europe, registering more than 15,000 infections and 1,000 dead. Italy has imposed a nationwide lockdown, with stores and restaurants closed and restrictions on individual movement. But the restrictions still pale in comparison to the severe lockdown China imposed in Wuhan.

The Italian public health system in the north is at near capacity, with 400-500 people a day requiring hospitalization in Lombardy alone.

AUSTRIA

Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz has announced dramatic measures to try and stem the spread of the COVID-19 virus in the Alpine nation, including quarantining two hard-hit areas of Tirol.

Kurz told reporters in Vienna that the towns of St. Anton am Arlberg and the Paznauntal area would be isolated for 14 days, but added residents and tourists now there will be well taken care of.

In addition, retail businesses are being asked to close as of Monday, outside of those providing essential services such as supermarkets, gas stations, banks, post offices and pharmacies. Bars and cafes will only be allowed to stay open until 3 p.m. starting Monday. Office workers are being asked to work remotely from home if possible.

“Starting Monday, we need to reduce our public lives to a minimum,” Kurz said.

Austria has 422 confirmed cases of the new coronavirus and one death.

SRI LANKA

Sri Lanka civil aviation authorities on Friday imposed a two-week travel ban on passengers from seven European countries; France, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, Netherlands and Sweden.

The ban will be effective until March 29. Separately on Friday, authority imposed a two-week travel ban on passengers from South Korea, Italy and Iran. This will be effective until March 28.

The authority is asking all airlines not to board any passengers from those countries or who visited those countries in the last 14 days.

FRANCE

France is promising to compensate the virus-related salary losses for “99%” of workers, as travel bans, school closures and other measures take a heavy toll on the economy.

It’s part of tens of billions of euros the government says it will stump up as French financial markets plunge and companies curb activity to try to stem the spread of the virus.

“Nobody with a job will lose a cent,” Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said.

France is also banning all gatherings of more than 100 people now that the virus has infected more than 2,800 people in the country and is spreading fast.

On Thursday, President Emmanuel Macron ordered all schools closed and asked companies to allow workers to stay home. France is going ahead with nationwide local elections on Sunday but is ordering special measures to keep people at a safe distance.

ROMANIA

The government of Romania, including all ministers, as well as the leadership of the ruling National Liberal Party and all its senators, have been asked to self-isolate because of the coronavirus.

Friday’s decision comes after a governing party senator, who took part in high-level meetings, was confirmed to be infected.

Prime Minister Ludovic Orban told reporters during a news conference that he will be quarantined in a state-owned villa and the government will still continue to carry out its duties.

CZECH REPUBLIC

Czech citizens coming home from 15 countries that are considered risky due to the virus outbreak will have to stay under quarantine for two weeks.

The announcement Friday by the Czech Republic’s government listed the following countries; China, Iran, Korea, Belgium, Denmark, France, Italy, Germany, Netherlands, Austria, Spain, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland and Britain.

Foreigners from those countries are barred from travelling to the Czech Republic and Czechs are not allowed to travel to those countries. Those measures become effective Friday midnight when the country renews border checks with Austria and Germany. The Czech Republic has 117 confirmed cases of COVID-19.

THAILAND

Thailand’s health minister has ignited controversy by warning about the possible spread of the coronavirus from vacationing Europeans who wear dirty clothes and don’t shower.

Tweets posted Thursday night by the account linked to Anutin Charnvirakul lashed out at Western visitors for not wearing face masks to protect against the virus, and warned his fellow Thais that they should be more careful in dealing with Westerners than with Asians.

Thailand’s government has come under criticism for confusing and inconsistent handling of the health crisis.

The tweets, along with the entire account, disappeared from Twitter by Friday afternoon.

SOUTH KOREA

South Korea plans to limit the amount of information it releases about coronavirus patients amid criticism that the details currently shared reveal too much personal information and exacerbate panic.

The director of South Korea’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Jung Eun-kyeong, said Friday her agency is drafting a new guideline for local governments to prevent them from releasing details that are unnecessary.

South Korean health authorities have been actively using personal information including immigration, public transportation, credit card and smartphone GPS data to track patients and their contacts.

Some people have used the information to identify the patients and have publicly condemned them.

CHINA

Chinese President Xi Jinping has told the U.N. that his nation wants to conduct joint research on drugs and vaccines and offer “as much assistance as it can” to countries where the novel coronavirus is spreading.

State media reported Friday that Xi told U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres by phone that economic and daily life are gradually returning to normal in China thanks to “arduous endeavours” at prevention and control.

He was also quoted as saying that the Chinese people’s “hard work has won precious time for and made important contributions to other countries’ epidemic prevention and control.”

China, where the virus was first discovered, recorded just eight new infections on Friday.

(The Associated Press)