‘We’ll die of hunger first’: Despair as Zimbabwe lockdown begins
Harare, Zimbabwe – It was still early on Sunday morning when Stewart Dzivira, his wife and their two-year-old son, jumped on a bus in Glen View, a densely populated suburb of Harare, to head into Zimbabwe’s capital. For days now, the 33-year-old has been unsuccessfully trying to get maize meal, or mealie meal, a Zimbabwean staple that […]
Coronavirus updates: Spain, Iran report hundreds of new deaths
Iran’s death toll from the new coronavirus has increased to 2,757 with 117 new deaths, while 812 more people died in Spain in the past 24 hours, reaching 7,340 in total. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump has extended federal guidelines on social distancing until April 30 after a top health official warned more than 100,000 people […]
Comedian Ken Shimura dies of Covid-19, is first Japanese celebrity to succumb to coronavirus
Japanese comedian Ken Shimura, who had been hospitalised after being infected with the new coronavirus, has died, becoming the first Japanese celebrity to die of the virus. His death, late on Sunday, set off widespread grief among fans. Shimura, 70, one of Japan’s best-known comedians with a career dating back to the early 1970s, reportedly had […]
Explained: Where does virus go from here?
On Sunday, the number of people infected with the novel coronavirus in India crossed the 1,000 mark. There are 40 countries who have more people infected. The death toll in India reached 27; the count is higher in 30 other countries. These numbers would suggest that India is in a relatively better, even if still difficult, […]
Pandemic proves there is only one world reserve currency
Rich nations have spent more than $9 trillion so far on tackling the economic fallout from COVID-19. And more spending is on the way as governments try to ensure there is a functioning economy post the pandemic. The damage done is likely to surpass the financial crisis and maybe even the Great Depression. It is the […]
Recovered COVID-19 patients’ plasma: what is this experimental therapy?
On Saturday, the Houston Methodist Hospital took blood from a patient who had recovered from COVID-19 two weeks ago, and infused it into another critically ill patient. It was a first for the US; the hospital’s blood bank now plans to collect blood from at least 250 recovered COVID-19 patients. With no specific treatment available for novel coronavirus disease […]
Coronavirus toll in New York state passes 1,000: Live updates
US President Donald Trump has extended federal guidelines on social distancing until April 30 after a top health official warned more than 100,000 people could die from the coronavirus in the United States. The announcement on Sunday evening came as the death toll in hard-hit New York state passed 1,000. “The modeling estimates that the […]
Why Modi, Trump & others are angry at WHO’s handling of Covid-19 crisis
New Delhi: The World Health Organisation (WHO), the agency that handles health within the United Nations, is facing a lot of global criticism, and even in India, over how it has handled this Covid-19 crisis. It does seem that it took too long in reacting to the pandemic and gave China a long pass. It was […]
As Iran coronavirus deaths rise, Rouhani hits back at criticism
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has hit back at criticism over the country’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, saying he had to weigh protecting the country’s sanctions-hit economy while tackling the worst outbreak in the region. Iran, one of the world’s hardest-hit countries from the virus, reported 123 more deaths on Sunday in the past 24 hours, pushing its […]
Doctor’s Note: Why are older people more vulnerable to COVID-19?
In almost every country battling with the COVID-19 outbreak, people over the age of 65 are being told to self-quarantine and shut themselves off from other people who might risk infecting them. Sadly, this means grandparents will not be seeing their children and grandchildren for potentially several months and risk being left emotionally as well […]
