Dorries, who helped craft the legislation to fight the bug, is the first British politician to be diagnosed with COVID-19 and it is said she had been in touch with hundreds of people.

LONDON: British MP Nadine Dorries, a minister in the health department, has tested positive for coronavirus, she said in a statement on Tuesday, raising concerns about whether senior government figures have been infected.

“I can confirm I have tested positive for coronavirus… and have been self-isolating at home,” said the Conservative MP. Health officials are now trying to trace where she contracted the virus and who she has been in contact with, she added. Six people have died in Britain from the virus, with more than 370 confirmed cases.

Dorries, who helped craft the legislation to fight the bug, is the first British politician to be diagnosed with COVID-19. The Times reported that she had been in touch with hundreds of people, including Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

She fell unwell on Friday while signing the document that declared coronavirus a notifiable disease, meaning companies could obtain insurance cover, said the paper, adding she was now believed to be on the road to recovery.

“I would like to thank… the wonderful NHS staff who have provided me with advice and support,” she said, referring to Britain’s National Health Service. The shock news is likely to increase calls to suspend parliament, despite the government’s reluctance to do so in the middle of a health crisis.

Thanks for so many good wishes. It’s been pretty rubbish but I hope I’m over the worst of it now. More worried about my 84 mum who is staying with me and began with the cough today. She is being tested tomorrow. Keep safe and keep washing those hands, everyone

Her boss Matt Hancock, who is leading Britain’s response, tweeted that he was “sorry to hear Nadine has tested positive for coronavirus. “She has done the right thing by self isolating at home, and both NHS and PHE staff have been brilliant. We all wish her well as she recover. We will do all we can to keep people safe, based on the best possible science,” he added. PHE refers to Public Health England.

Finance minister Rishi Sunak will on Wednesday unveil the government’s first post-Brexit budget, with all eyes on emergency government measures to ease the economic pain from the coronavirus outbreak. He is expected to give the state-run National Health Service whatever it needs to help combat the virus and promise temporary support for businesses hit by cash flow issues.

The Bank of England’s incoming chief Andrew Bailey last week said UK-based companies would need help in the face of disruption to supplies caused by the virus.

Budget airlines Ryanair and EasyJet said they will cancel all Italian flights until early April after the government ordered the entire country locked down because of the virus, leaving thousands of people unable to return home.

There were just 19 fresh cases reported on Tuesday, the lowest number since the government started tallying infections on January 21, according to the National Health Commission.

BEIJING: The global death toll from the new coronavirus passed 4,000 on Tuesday, according to AFP figures, as China reported 17 new deaths. The toll reached 4,011 in the outbreak that has spread to over 100 countries with more than 110,000 cases of infection.

The epidemic has disrupted global travel and forced the cancellation of everything from conferences to sporting events. But in China, new cases have steadily declined in recent weeks, in a sign that the country’s unprecedented lockdown measures appear to be working.

There were just 19 fresh cases reported on Tuesday, the lowest number since the government started tallying infections on January 21, according to the National Health Commission. All the new infections were in the virus epicentre, the central city of Wuhan, except for two imported cases brought in from overseas.

This means there were no indigenous cases in the rest of the country. The 17 new deaths were all in central Hubei province – 16 in Wuhan, the capital of the province – bringing the country’s nationwide toll to 3,136.
It is the lowest daily toll since late January.

More than 80,750 people have now been infected in China, which has imposed unprecedented lockdown measures to try to control the spread of the virus. But fears are growing that as cases of the disease grow overseas, China’s progress could be undermined by the virus being brought back into the country from other nations.

There have now been 69 imported cases, according to Chinese health officials. The World Health Organization said Monday that more than 70 percent of those infected with the new coronavirus in China have recovered, adding that the country was “bringing its epidemic under control”.

And there were tentative signs in recent days that some of the measures to restrict the movement and gathering of people could be lifted, with some regions reopening schools or announcing dates to resume classes.

Most of the 16 makeshift hospitals opened in Wuhan have been closed — with the last two expected to shut Tuesday. And Shanghai Disney said it was reopening its shopping and entertainment Disneytown zone in the “first step of a phased reopening”, although the amusement park remains closed.

American technology company Apple Inc reopened 90 per cent of its 42 retail stores in the Chinese mainland on Monday with the novel coronavirus outbreak showing signs of abating.

Apple reopened 38 Apple stores which were temporarily closed after the epidemic, state-run China Daily reported.

Only four stores remain closed.

Apple announced closures of all its stores when the COVID-19 outbreak reached its peak in January.

The move to reopen follows Apple Inc CEO Tim Cook’s statement that China is getting the virus situation under control, and Apple manufacturing units in China will reopen.

Contrary to the earlier market forecast that the epidemic will heavily hurt smartphone sales in China, some experts said its negative impacts may be lower than expected, the China Daily reported.

As consumers stay at home for self-quarantine or to avoid infection, they are spending far more time with their smartphones.

They have stronger demand to upgrade their devices that are relatively old or not performing very well, an independent telecom analyst Fu Liang told the daily.

The death toll due to the deadly disease across the world mounted to 3,123 and confirmed cases surpassed 91,783, official media here reported.

BEIJING: The death toll of coronavirus in China has crossed 3,000 with 31 new fatalities and the total number of confirmed cases jumped to over 94,000 globally according to World Health Organisation.

Coronavirus cases also surged to over 84,400 in China, and President Xi Jinping has called for “undiminished vigilance”, saying the situation in virus-hit Wuhan still remains severe despite positive progress.

China’s National Health Commission said on Thursday that it received reports of 139 new confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus infection and 31 deaths on Wednesday on the Chinese mainland.

All the deaths were in the epicentre of the virus, Hubei Province and its capital Wuhan, which continued to be ground zero of the COVID-19.

Also on Wednesday, 143 new suspected cases were reported while the number of severe cases decreased by 464 to 5,952, the NHC said, adding that 522 people were still suspected of being infected with the virus.

The overall confirmed cases on the Chinese mainland have reached 80,409 by the end of Wednesday.

This included 3,012 people who have died of the disease, 25,352 patients still undergoing treatment and 52,045 patients who have been discharged.

Also on Wednesday, two “imported cases” (people arriving from abroad) of the novel coronavirus infection were reported on the mainland, all of which were in Zhejiang Province.

By the end of Wednesday, 20 imported cases have been reported, the commission said.

By the end of Wednesday, 104 confirmed cases, including two deaths have been reported in Hong Kong, 10 confirmed cases in Macao and 42 in Taiwan, including one death, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

Forty-three patients in Hong Kong, nine in Macao and 12 in Taiwan have been discharged from hospital after recovery.

In Hubei province, from where the COVID-19 originated in December reported 134 new confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus infection and 31 new deaths on Wednesday, the local health commission said.

The latest report brought the total confirmed cases in the hard-hit province to 67,466 and that of total deaths to 2,902, which included 2,305 fatalities in Wuhan.

The province also saw 1,923 patients discharged from hospital after recovery on Wednesday, bringing the total number of discharged patients in the province to 40,479.

Among the 20,765 hospitalised patients, 4,747 were still in severe condition and another 1,041 in critical condition, it said.

Hubei province also reported 67 new suspected cases of the virus on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for undiminished vigilance on the prevention and control work of the COVID-19 as the situation in the Wuhan City and Hubei Province remains severe.

After arduous efforts throughout the country, the current situation of the epidemic prevention and control has continued to improve, and production and people’s living have been recovering, Xi said in a meeting of the Political Bureau of the ruling Communist Party of China, (CPC) on Wednesday here.

He called for more efforts to accelerate the establishment of an economic and social order that is compatible with the prevention and control work of the epidemic, so as to consolidate and expand this hard-won good momentum and create condition to build a moderately well-off society in all respects, and completely eliminate absolute poverty, state-run CGTN reported.

The epidemic prevention and control work remains tough in Hubei province and Wuhan city, and the risk of the epidemic spreading is increasing due to increased movement of people and gatherings in other regions, he pointed out.

He asked relevant authorities to deepen global cooperation and play China’s role as a responsible major country.

It is imperative to promptly advance various tasks of economic and social development, orderly promote the resumption of work and production, realise the orderly flow of people and property, the connection of production, supply and marketing, and the effective integration of domestic and foreign trade, and minimise the loss caused by the epidemic, Xi said.

The CPC meeting highlighted the importance of COVID-19 prevention and control work in Beijing and called for more efforts in preventing the situation from rebounding.

The meeting also urged more scientific research into test kits, vaccines and medical supplies.

By the end of Wednesday, there have been 12,600 confirmed cases of the coronavirus outside China, with over 214 deaths, statistics from the World Health Organisation showed Thursday.

In the past 24 hours, 2,103 newly confirmed cases outside China have been reported and four new member states–Argentina, Chile, Poland and Ukraine–have reported cases of COVID-19, the state-run People’s Daily reported.

South Korea confirmed 438 more cases of COVID-19, raising the total number of infections to 5,766, according to Yonhap News Agency.

Japan confirmed over 1,037 coronavirus cases, and so far 12 people have died due to the infection.

Italy reported a total of 107 deaths of the deadly coronavirus, taking the total number to 3,089.

In Iran, the deadly infection claimed 92 lives out of more than 2,922 cases.

The US’ death toll from the COVID-19 rose to 11 on Thursday and nationwide there are nearly 160 confirmed cases.

France said that 21 new cases of COVID-19 had been identified with a total of 285 cases now diagnosed, of which 12 were cured and four have died.

The United Arab Emirates has cancelled all flights to Iran, as have other Gulf countries. It has also limited flights in China to just Beijing to reduce the spread of the virus.

ABU DHABI: Major travel disruptions due to the new coronavirus have already caused the equivalent of a roughly $100 million loss to airlines in the Middle East, which serves as a connection hub for east-west travel, the industry’s main trade association said Monday.

The Persian Gulf city of Dubai, which is home to the world’s busiest airport for international travel, relies heavily on tourism and aviation.

The Gulf is a major transit hub for passengers connecting from Europe to Asia.

The United Arab Emirates has cancelled all flights to Iran, as have other Gulf countries.

It has also limited flights in China to just Beijing to reduce the spread of the virus.

The International Air Transport Association, which represents around 290 airlines, said a projected 4.6% growth in passenger demand in the Middle East this year will be halved to just 2.3% if conditions do not change.

Most cases of the new coronavirus in the Middle East have come from travellers recently in Iran, where the virus has killed 66 people among some 1,500 who are infected.

Worldwide, the virus, which started in China, has infected more than 89,000 people, and more than 6,000 have died.

Even before the virus emerged, the big Gulf carriers had already posted significantly lower earnings due to higher fuel costs, a strengthened U.S. dollar, and lower airfreight and travel demand.

The IATA’s estimates do not include the additional impact to regional carriers forced to stop flights to Mecca and Medina, where Saudi Arabia suspended issuing visas to Muslim pilgrims to stymie the spread of the virus.

The United Arab Emirates-based newspaper The National reported that Dubai’s Emirates Group has given  employees at the airline, the Middle East’s biggest, the option to take paid and even unpaid leave.

The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Other airlines in Europe and Asia have reportedly done the same.

“It’s a demonstration of how hard the industry’s been hit by flight cancellations and closing borders,” said Muhammad Albakri, IATA’s regional vice president for Africa and the Middle East.

The association has said that if the spread of the virus continues, the aviation industry globally can expect a $30 billion revenue loss and a 4.7 percent reduction in global air traffic for the year.

The aviation industry in the Asia Pacific region will be hardest hit, seeing a $27.8 billion revenue loss if the situation does not improve.About $12.8 billion of that will be wiped from the domestic Chinese aviation market.

The number of confirmed cases leapt by 523 from the previous day, to a total of 1,501, Deputy Health Minister Alireza Raisi told a news conference.

TEHRAN: Iran said Monday that novel coronavirus had killed 12 more people in the Islamic republic, raising the country’s overall death toll to 66.

The number of confirmed cases leapt by 523 from the previous day, to a total of 1,501, Deputy Health Minister Alireza Raisi told a news conference.

“We are announcing 523 new cases infected (and) 12 new deaths. The total number of deaths is therefore 66,” Raisi said. 

The worst-hit places were Tehran, the central province of Qom and Gilan in the north, the official said, adding that 291 people had recovered. 

Qom, a Shiite holy city, was the scene of Iran’s first reported cases and deaths from the outbreak that began in China.

The official news agency IRNA reported on Monday the death of Mohammad Mirmohammadi, 72, a member of the Expediency Council which advises the supreme leader.

IRNA did not specify the cause of death but said he had died at Tehran’s Massih Daneshvari Hospital, the capital’s main centre for patients suffering from the new coronavirus.

Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan revealed that two new patients, one in New Delhi and the other in Telangana, caught the deadly bug that has already killed over 3,000 people.

NEW DELHI: With India back on the active Coronavirus map, as two persons tested positive on Monday, the Centre said it will pay more attention to community surveillance for people with travel histories from highly-infected countries, a step experts warned might be not enough.

On the last count, the virus had travelled to 72 countries and territories, besides a Japanese cruise ship.

Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan revealed that two new patients, one in New Delhi and the other in Telangana, caught the deadly bug that has already killed over 3,000 people and infected over 90,000 globally.

While the Delhi patient returned from Italy recently, the one in Telangana had been to Dubai. Their condition is said to be stable.

The government is now trying to identify and isolate people who came in contact with them.

The two new cases are in addition to the three from Kerala earlier. 

“At the moment, passengers from 12 countries are being screened for possible infection at airports and seaports. If a need arises on the basis of scientific evaluation, we could screen travellers from more countries in the days to come,” Vardhan said.

But officials in the health ministry conceded that the expanding footprint on the virus could make it tougher for India to combat it.

“It was still easier till the outbreak was mostly localised in China. But with passengers arriving from countries that are reeling from high number of infections, we are feeling more pressure,” a senior ministry official told this newspaper.

Going forward, the government wants to increase community surveillance, for which a training module of state officials will be held this week.” These officials will then train healthcare personnel at the district level,” another official said.

However, experts feared these steps might not be adequate.

“Given the fact that the virus has an extended incubation period, it’s now necessary to take initiatives like testing pneumonia patients without definitive diagnosis in major hospitals, random testing for virus in influenza patients through influenza surveillance programme and equip our hospitals for possible outbreaks,” said Dr G Arun Kumar, a senior epidemiologist with Manipal Institute of Virology.

Travellers from 12 countries including  Nepal, China, Hong Kong, Iran, under watch at 21 airports across the country.

5 samples test positive

As many as 3,245 samples scanned, out of which five have tested positive for COVID-19 while reports of 23 are awaited right now.

Borders under vigil 

Over 10.24 L people screened in the villages of Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal and Sikkim.  

Grapplers cancel camp

Six women grapplers in Olympic weight categories including Vinesh Phogat cancelled Ukraine camp because of coronavirus. Vinesh will now go to Norway.

Faizan Rizwan

Since the outbreak of the new corona virus, the highly contagious virus caused great concern in the international community. Here are the precautions for the World Health Organization and China to prevent the virus.

Basic protective measures against the new coronavirus

(1) Maintain hand hygiene. Wash your hands with running water after coughing, before or after meals, after touching or handling animal waste, or use alcohol-free hand sanitizer.

(2) Maintain indoor air circulation. Avoid closed, airless public places and crowded places. Wear masks if necessary. Cover your mouth and nose with tissue paper or elbow flexion when coughing and sneezing to prevent droplets from spreading.

(3) Be sure to wear a suitable mask when visiting a hospital or accompanying a doctor.

(4) Good and safe eating habits. Separate cutting boards and knives for raw and cooked food. Cook meat and eggs thoroughly during cooking.

(5) Try to avoid contact with wild or farmed animals without protection.

Though 10,844 people had been discharged from hospitals after recovery, the commission said in its daily report said that 7,264 people were still suspected to be infected by the deadly virus.

BEIJING: China reported 105 new deaths due to the new coronavirus on Monday, pushing the overall death toll to 1,770, as officials announced stringent measures such as closing non-essential public venues and traffic restrictions to control the epidemic in the worst-hit Hubei province.

The National Health Commission said 2,048 new cases of the virus have been confirmed, taking the total number of COVID-19 infected cases to 70,548, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

Of the new deaths, 100 were from Hubei Province, three in Henan, and two in Guangdong.

Though 10,844 people had been discharged from hospitals after recovery, the commission said in its daily report said that 7,264 people were still suspected to be infected by the deadly virus.

By Sunday, 57 confirmed cases including one death had been reported from Hong Kong, 10 in Macao, and 20 in Taiwan including one death.

Hubei, where 18 cities with over 50 million people are under lockdown since January 23, announced a slew of more stringent measures to control the epidemic, including enforcing province-wide traffic restrictions on all non-emergency vehicles and closing all non-essential public venues.

A circular by the provincial government said the health screening campaign should be strengthened and no one should be missed.

Also, companies should not resume production unless allowed by local authorities.

Those that have resumed work including public institutions should follow strict prevention measures.

The measures came as the situation remains “grave”, the circular added.

However on Sunday, the commission announced a “significant drop” in new cases, suggesting that epidemic control measures were taking effect.

“In Wuhan, the epicentre of the epidemic, the proportion of severe cases among the confirmed cases fell from a peak of 32.4 per cent on January 28 to 21.6 per cent on February 15,” Mi Feng, a spokesperson with the NHC, said during a media briefing.

Meanwhile, a 12-member team of World Health Organisation experts began assisting their Chinese counterparts to control the virus.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said international experts were now on the ground in China to understand the outbreak and inform the next steps in the global response.

Ghebreyesus also met Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at the Munich Security Conference.

He said “given the misinformation about the novel coronavirus epidemic, WHO has communicated with some companies including Google to ensure that the public will get the authoritative information from the WHO”.

He said one of the goals of the joint mission is to rapidly inform the public of the next steps and preparedness activities in China and globally.

“Particular attention will be paid to understanding the transmission of the virus, the severity of disease and the impact of ongoing response measures.”

In Beijing, the NHC said the joint mission will pay field visits in China’s three provincial-level regions to learn the implementation and effectiveness of the epidemic control measures.

The virus, first identified in China on December 31, has killed more than 1,000 people, infected over 42,000 and reached some 25 countries.

GENEVA: The head of the World Health Organisation on Tuesday warned the novel coronavirus was a “very grave threat” for the world as he opened a conference to combat the epidemic.

“With 99% of cases in China, this remains very much an emergency for that country, but one that holds a very grave threat for the rest of the world,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in Geneva.

Some 400 scientists will review how the virus is transmitted and possible vaccines at the two-day forum.

“What matters most is stopping the outbreak and saving lives. With your support, that’s what we can do together,” Tedros said.

The virus, first identified in China on December 31, has killed more than 1,000 people, infected over 42,000 and reached some 25 countries.

Participants will also discuss the source of the virus, which is thought to have originated in bats and reached humans via another animal such as snakes or pangolins.

There is no specific treatment or vaccine against the virus, which can cause respiratory failure.

Tedros, who has repeatedly urged countries affected to share their data, called for global “solidarity”.

“That is especially true in relation to sharing of samples and sequences.

To defeat this outbreak, we need open and equitable sharing, according to the principles of fairness and equity,” he said.

“We hope that one of the outcomes of this meeting will be an agreed roadmap for research around which researchers and donors will align,” Tedros said.

Several companies and institutes in Australia, China, France, Germany and the United States are racing to develop a vaccine — a process that normally takes years.

Asked whether scientists from Taiwan would be allowed to take part in this week’s Geneva conference, WHO officials said that they would do so but only online — along with colleagues from other parts of China.

While the WHO does not deal with Taiwan directly and only recognises Beijing, Taiwan was often allowed to attend annual assemblies and sideline meetings as an observer.

But in recent years it has been frozen out as Beijing takes an increasingly combative stance towards democratic Taiwan, which it considers its own territory.

Dubai: An Indian national has been diagnosed with the novel coronavirus in the UAE, bringing the total number of confirmed infection cases to eight, the country’s health ministry has said.

The death toll in China’s coronavirus outbreak has gone up to 1,016 while the confirmed cases of infection have soared to 42,638, Chinese health officials said on Tuesday.

The UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) said on Monday that the Indian national was infected after he interacted with a recently diagnosed person.

“The Ministry of Health and Prevention announced today the eighth confirmed case of new coronavirus in the UAE, which is an Indian national who had interacted with a recently diagnosed person.

On Sunday, the ministry said that the two new patients, a Chinese national and a Filipino, had been diagnosed with the disease and were receiving medical care as per the highest health standards available in the country.

It said that all health facilities will continue to report any new cases suspected to have coronavirus.

Last week, a family of four who arrived from Wuhan for a holiday in Dubai were diagnosed with coronavirus. A fifth patient, who also arrived from the Chinese city, was confirmed to have been infected with the virus, but is reportedly in a stable condition.

China and countries around the world are scrambling to contain the spread of coronavirus which fiirst surfaced in Wuhan city in the Central Hubei province of China. Apart from China, two deaths have occurred in Hong Kong and the Philippines.

Besides Germany, Britain and Italy, other European nations with cases of the virus include France, Russia, Belgium, Sweden, Finland and Spain.