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New coronavirus infections increased again in Germany Late last week, a few days after leaders loosened social restrictions, while the Chinese city of Wuhan announced that it had detected its first case in weeks, which helped propel the global total by more than 4m on Sunday.
On the eve of the UK beginning to ease its shutdown on Monday, the new cases in Germany and China illustrated the difficulties governments will face in the coming months when trying to reopen their societies without triggering a second wave of infections.
France, which also plans to begin easing its seven-week hard shutdown starting Monday, announced the discovery of a group of at least nine cases linked to a funeral in Dordogne, in the southwest of the country.
A local prefect, Frédéric Perissat, said the group was “an illustration of what we hope not to experience in the coming weeks.” “There is a decrease, people gather in a group of 20 or 30 and one person contaminates the others,” he added.
South Korea warned of a resurgence of Covid-19 on Sunday as the infections recovered within a maximum of a month as the restrictions began to ease.
“It won’t end until it’s over,” said President Moon Jae-in, warning of a possible second wave of the virus later this year.
The Korean Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 34 new infections, the highest since April 9, after a small outbreak emerged at various nightclubs, prompting authorities to temporarily close all facilities. night entertainment in the capital.
The country is examining whether it will reopen schools in stages starting Wednesday this week as planned, health minister Park Neung-hoo said.
China It reported 14 new confirmed cases of coronavirus on Saturday, the highest number since April 28, including the first in five weeks in Wuhan City, where the outbreak was first detected late last year.
GermanyThe Robert Koch Institute for Disease Control said in a daily bulletin Sunday that the number of people each sick person was infecting in the country, known as the rate of reproduction, or R, had risen to 1.1.
The government’s disease control agency warned that there could be some fluctuations in its estimate of the R number, but said developments in the coming days should be closely watched.
Chancellor Angela Merkel bowed to pressure from leaders of the country’s 16 federal states to restart social life and revive the economy, and announced measures Wednesday that included more store openings and a gradual return to school.
At the same time, it launched an “emergency brake” to allow for the re-imposition of restrictions if infections recover again.
Karl Lauterbach, a Social Democratic lawmaker and professor of epidemiology, warned that the coronavirus could begin to spread rapidly after seeing large crowds on Saturday in his hometown of Cologne.
“You have to expect the R rate to exceed 1 and let’s go back to exponential growth,” Lauterbach said in a tweet. “The relaxation measures were too poorly prepared.”
In Italy, which began easing its restrictions last Monday, there were similar scenes of busy parks in Milan and Turin over the weekend, drawing criticism from lawmakers.
Milan Mayor Beppe Sala said he was “angry” at the socialization scenes in Navigli, a canal district of the city, and warned that he would close the area entirely if citizens did not respect the rules. Bars and restaurants across Italy can provide takeaway services, but people cannot congregate outside.
Spain It has recorded its lowest number of deaths in a single day in almost two months, as around half the country is preparing to move on to the next phase of its escalation reduction plan on Monday.
According to the latest figures from the health ministry, there were 143 deaths in the last 24 hours, and 621 new cases. To date, Spain has confirmed 224,390 cases and 26,621 deaths.
The country is reducing restrictions region by region, provided certain criteria are met. The regions of Madrid and Barcelona, two of the most affected in the country, were not considered to qualify to be able to calm their blockades yet.
Health Minister Salvador Illa warned that the transition to what the government calls “the new normal” cannot be accelerated.
Russia reported an increase of more than 10,000 cases, bringing their total to over 200,000. Authorities have warned that the cases may not peak until June despite a blockade that prevents Russians from leaving their homes more than twice a week.
Djibouti, the small Horn of Africa nation with the highest number of coronavirus cases on the continent per capita, reversed plans to begin lifting the blockade measures this week, saying it was premature.
“The government, through the prime minister’s voice, decided to extend the confinement for another week until May 17,” Foreign Minister Mahmoud Ali Youssouf said in a Twitter post.
“Noting that the preconditions are not yet in place, the government made this decision at this time,” he said.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Africa say Djibouti has the highest number of cases in Africa relative to its population, although its tests have also surpassed many of its neighbors.
Blockade measures in the country have been largely ignored, with large crowds still common in the capital city.
Agencies contributed to this report
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