Live news about the coronavirus: UN warns of ‘biblical’ famine as White House prepares to stop immigration | World News

My colleague Charlotte Graham-McLay has this enchanting feature about what being locked up has been like for people in the small, beachy town of Lyall Bay, New Zealand:

China has released its figures, reporting that there are no new coronavirus-related deaths for the fifth consecutive day.

There were 7 new national cases, 23 imported cases, and 42 asymptomatic cases, reports People’s Daily:

At least seven people contracted the coronavirus during the Wisconsin primary election on April 7, Milwaukee health officials said Tuesday, confirming fears that holding an in-person vote during the health crisis puts people at risk, reports Reuters.

The seven cases include six voters and one poll worker in Milwaukee, the state’s largest city, where nearly 200 polling places were reduced to five and there were long hours of voting lines, the Health Commissioner’s office confirmed. Milwaukee, Jeanette Kowalik.

The number of election-related infections could increase as the 14-day incubation period ends on Wednesday, health officials said.

As of Tuesday afternoon, Milwaukee had 1,697 confirmed cases of Covid-19, the respiratory illness caused by the new coronavirus, and 92 virus-related deaths. Wisconsin had 4,620 confirmed cases and 242 deaths overall, according to city and state data.

Democratic Governor Tony Evers, who declared a state of emergency on March 12, tried to delay the April 7 elections or move all ballots to mail ballots. But the courts sided with the Republican-controlled state legislature to hold an in-person vote.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced a $ 26 billion aid package on Tuesday to support the economy and the vulnerable during the coronavirus pandemic, reports AFP.

In a special speech to the nation, Ramaphosa announced “a massive package of social and economic support of R500 billion ($ 26.3 billion), which represents approximately 10% of our GDP.”

“The impact of coronavirus requires an extraordinary budget for coronavirus … the scale of this emergency program is historic,” he said.

Ramaphosa said South Africa is now entering the second phase of its Covid-19 response, with the goal of stabilizing the economy, addressing declining supply and demand, and protecting jobs.

The president said that about $ 2.6 billion would go to the most vulnerable through grants, and that 250,000 food packages would be distributed to needy citizens over the next two weeks.

Almost 30% of South Africans were unemployed before the virus struck.

The US state of Missouri sued China’s leadership on the coronavirus on Tuesday, seeking damages for what it described as deliberate deception and insufficient action to stop the pandemic, AFP reports.

The first state lawsuit comes amid calls in Congress to punish China and a campaign by President Donald Trump to focus on Beijing’s role, amid criticism of his own handling of the crisis.

Missouri, led by the Republican Party of Trump, filed a lawsuit in federal court seeking an unspecified amount of damages and a court order on China’s continued actions that allegedly include the hoarding of protective equipment.

The chances of success of the lawsuit are far from certain, since the law of the United States, under the principle of sovereign immunity, generally prohibits legal actions against foreign governments.

Missouri addressed the issue by suing the ruling Communist Party, arguing that it is not formally an organ of the Chinese state.

Under his conservative leadership, Missouri has imposed fewer Covid-19 restrictions than most US states. This includes allowing companies to remain open as long as they limit the number of people present and guarantee space between them.

Hello and welcome to today’s live coverage of the coronavirus pandemic with me, Helen Sullivan. You can contact directly at Twitter @helenrsullivan.

United States President Donald Trump has announced some of the details of his immigration ban. He will sign the executive order establishing the ban on Wednesday, he said at the White House press conference, and will be in effect for 60 days, after which he will review whether an extension is needed.

Meanwhile, the UN warned that 265 million people could starve to death in a widespread famine caused by the coronavirus. “We are seeing widespread famines of biblical proportions,” David Beasley, head of the UN food aid agency, told The Guardian.

• Global deaths exceed 175,000. So far, at least 176,926 people have lost their lives in the coronavirus pandemic, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. There have been more than 2.5 million cases worldwide.
• The President of the United States, Donald Trump, sets some terms of the United States immigration ban. At the White House press conference, Trump said the ban, which he will sign Wednesday, will be in effect for 60 days, after which he will reevaluate the need. The ban will not affect temporary immigration, he said.
• The UN warned that 265 million people could starve to death in widespread famine caused by coronavirus. “We are seeing widespread famines of biblical proportions,” David Beasley, head of the UN food aid agency, told The Guardian.
• The World Health Organization says that the coronavirus comes from bats. The WHO said all available evidence suggests that the coronavirus originated from bats in China late last year and was not manipulated or built in a laboratory. Trump said last week that the United States was trying to determine if the virus emanated from a laboratory in Wuhan, central China.
• Italy will announce a plan to ease the blockade this week as confirmed cases drop to 20. The country’s prime minister said the government will reveal plans for the gradual reopening of the shutdown before the end of this week. Italy recorded its first significant drop in infections on Tuesday.
• A team from Oxford University. will start testing a vaccine in Thursday people.
• The UK’s choice to stay out of an EU fan scheme was a “political decision” Sir Simon McDonald, permanent undersecretary at the Foreign Office, said, challenging previous claims that the UK did not participate due to lost emails.
• UK government’s PPE claims came under scrutiny from the leader of the opposition Labor Party, Sir Keir Starmer, who stated that there is a “growing gap” between the government’s claims about the PPE and reality.
• The Mexican government said the country had entered the “most serious stage” of its outbreak.. The country’s vice minister of health, Hugo López-Gatell, said: “We are in the phase of rapid spread, where a large number of infections and hospitalizations are accumulating.”
• The Pamplona bullfight is canceled. The annual event, where hundreds of daredevils play a risky and controversial game of catching me if you can with half-ton fighting bulls, was supposed to take place in Spain in July.
• Singapore extends the blockade after the second wave surge in cases. Singapore, which has been praised for its initial response to the outbreak, has seen an increase in cases, reporting a record 1,426 new coronavirus cases on Monday, mainly among foreign workers. The city state prime minister announced that the blockade would last four weeks until June 1.
• Denmark’s ban on more than 500 meetings will be in force until September. The country’s government has announced that it will not allow meetings of more than 500 people until at least September 1.
• Oktoberfest is canceled. Bavaria’s leaders have called off Oktoberfest, the world’s largest beer festival, out of fear that it may become a breeding ground for the coronavirus.