Middle East countries continue expat evacuations as global coronavirus death toll passes 70,000

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Medical personnel speak to a Lebanese national, residing in Saudi Arabia, in the lobby of a hotel, where they will be housed, in the capital Beirut. (AFP)
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Every number mentioned is a human life and every victim leaves behind them people who have to grieve in a complete lockdown. (File/Enrique Ortiz/AFP)
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Updated 08 April 2020
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Middle East countries continue expat evacuations as global coronavirus death toll passes 70,000

DUBAI: Governments across the Middle East began further expat repatriations as the coronavirus death toll reached 69,444 on Monday.
On Sunday a chartered Emirates Airline plane flew out 345 British citizens who were unable to return home after the closure of UAE airports to international traffic on March 24.
Abu Dhabi also sent a second plane carrying stranded Lebanese expats abroad due to the virus on Sunday afternoon. Lebanese Minister of Tourism and Social Affairs, Ramzi Moucharafieh, said those who returned will be quarantined in the Lancaster hotels chain in Beirut’s Raouche area.

Monday, April 6 (All times in GMT)

20:00 - Egypt announces 149 new cases, 7 more deaths and 259 recoveries from the coronavirus.

19:30 - in Rome reports on how as the national lockdown in Italy due to the coronavirus pandemic is set to go on at least until Easter, if not longer, Italians are no longer singing on their balconies. READ HIS FULL ACCOUNT HERE.

19:00 - British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been moved to the intensive care unit of a London hospital after his coronavirus symptoms worsened. FULL STORY HERE.

16:54 - Turkey’s death toll from the new coronavirus rose by 75 to total 649, and new confirmed cases rose by 3,148 to bring the country’s total to 30,217, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said on Twitter.
He said 21,400 tests for the COVID-19 disease had been performed in Turkey in the last 24 hours.

16:20 - Kuwait placed a full lockdown on two areas and extended its partial curfew by two hours to run from 5 pm (1400 GMT) till 6 am effective Monday until further notice, a statement from the cabinet said.

It also extended a previously enacted suspension of work for all ministries and government institutions by two weeks until April 26 as precautionary measure against coronavirus.

16:25 - Qatar reports 228 new coronavirus cases, with 131 cases recovered.

16:20 - Deaths from the COVID-19 epidemic in Italy rose by 636 on Monday, more than 100 higher than the previous daily tally of 525, the Civil Protection Agency said, but the number of new cases fell sharply.

The total death toll since the outbreak came to light on Feb. 21 came to 16,523, the highest in the world.

16:00 - 103 more coronavirus cases were recorded in Algeria on Monday, meaning the total in the country has risen to 1,423.

15:35 - More than 5,000 people who tested positive for coronavirus have now died in Britain, official figures showed Monday, with a latest daily toll of 439.

“As of 5pm on 5 April, of those hospitalized in the UK who tested positive for coronavirus 5,373 have died,” the health ministry said in a tweet.

15:00 - German chancellor Angela Merkel says the European Union faces its biggest test since its inception and any possible easing of restrictions will be done step by step to not overwhelm the health system.

She also said Europe must develop “self-sufficiency” in producing masks “as something that we learn out of this pandemic” of COVID-19.

14:15 - The mother of Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola has died after contracting the coronavirus, according to a club tweet on Monday afternoon. FULL STORY.

13:40 - More than 20,000 Pakistani workers stuck in the United Arab Emirates are seeking to return home, as the Gulf Arab state tightens restrictions due to the coronavirus outbreak.

As the virus has spread, the UAE has gradually increased curbs, including imposing a nationwide curfew, suspending passenger flights and putting Dubai in a lockdown.

13:25 – The UAE reported 277 new cases of coronavirus, 23 recoveries and one death, bringing the country’s tallies to 2,076 total cases, 167 recoveries and 11 deaths.

13:15 - England’s hospital death toll from the coronavirus rose by 403 to 4,897, the National Health Service said.

The health service said 15 of the 403 patients had no known underlying health conditions.

12:15 - Riot police wielding batons used force to break up a protest by Pakistani doctors and medical staff against a lack of gear to protect against coronavirus, arresting dozens of medics who say the government has failed to deliver promised supplies. Reuters journalists at the scene, in the southwestern city of Quetta, saw hundreds of doctors and paramedics, some in face masks and scrubs, chanting their demands. Some were dragged off by riot police in helmets, armed with rifles and batons.

10:25 – Lebanon confirmed 14 new coronavirus cases and one death, bringing totals to 541 infected, and 19 fatalities.

10:05 – Iran’s total number of coronavirus infections topped 60,500 and the death toll from the outbreak reached 3,739, the country’s health ministry said.

09:40 – Spain’s coronavirus cases rose to 135,032 from 130,759 on Sunday, while the death toll has reached to 13,055 from 12,418 a day earlier.

09:30 – Iraqi Kurdistan has reported 41 new coronavirus cases in Erbil.

09:15 – The Kuwait health ministry confirmed109 new cases of coronavirus, increasing the total to 665.




Above, a police man wearing a mask stands by flight information board at the Kuwait International Airport Terminal 4 on April 3, 2020. (AFP)

08:50 – Indonesia confirmed 218 new coronavirus cases, the biggest daily jump since the first cases were announced a month ago, taking the total number of infections to 2,491, a Health Ministry official said.

08:45 – Bahrain said that 19 people were released from quarantine.

08:40 – The Philippine health ministry reported 11 new coronavirus deaths, bringing total to 163, and 414 new coronavirus infections, bringing total to 3,660.

08:20 – Palestine said there were nine new coronavirus infections, with a total of 246.

07:45 – Saudi state TV reported that 176 Americans have left Dammam for Washington.

07:45 – Russia’s coronavirus case tally has risen to 6,343 in the past 24 hours, a record daily increase of 954, the country’s crisis response center said..

07:35 – Morocco recorded 92 new coronavirus infections, total has risen to 1,113 cases.

07:10 – Israel reported an increase in COVID-19 deaths, bringing toll to 51. There are currently 8,611 confirmed infections in the country.

07:05 – Singapore announced S$5.1 billion ($3.55 billion) in additional economic spending such as wage support, waiver of levies and one-off payments to combat the coronavirus pandemic. READ THE STORY

07:05 – Saudi Arabia has confirmed 61 new cases of coronaviurs, increasing toll to 2,463.




Above, the old town of Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coastal city of Jeddah looks deserted after a lockdown was implmented to stem the spread of coronavirus. (AFP)

06:30 – The Omani Ministry of Health reported 33 new cases of coronavirus infections, bringing the total number in the country to 331. 

06:00 - The chairman of the property developer Emaar, Mohamed Ali Alabbar, told staff he will take a 100% pay cut during the economic crisis brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

It’s part of what he called in an email to all 6,600 employees, a “new company-wide salary structure,” that will see most take a cut of varying amounts, until further notice.

04:55 – Thailand reported 51 new coronavirus cases and three more deaths, according to a spokesman for the government’s Center for COVID-19 Situation Administration.

00:15 – Morocco has recorded 31 new coronavirus cases, bringing the total to 1,021 with 70 deaths and 76 recoveries.

Sunday, April 5 (All times in GMT)

20:35 – Tunisia has confirmed 21 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total to 574.

19:40 – Saudi Arabia has detected 17 new coronavirus cases, increasing the total to 2,402 with 488 recoveries.

18:35 – Egypt has announced 103 new coronavirus cases, seven deaths and six recoveries. The country’s totals are currently at 1,173 infections, 247 recoveries and 78 deaths.

18:30 – The UAE government is freeing up more cash to boost the local economy after it cut by half the reserve requirement for demand deposits, giving local lenders a wider latitude in managing their money amid the coronavirus pandemic.

18:25 – Jordan has confirmed 21 new COVID-19 cases and 36 recoveries, increasing the total to 345 infected persons and 110 recovered.

17:25 – The Lebanese Embassy in Paris on Sunday said it was providing monetary support to students stuck in France after the country imposed a lockdown on March 17 curb the spread of coronavirus.


’Shaking with cold’: tourists from Egypt boat sinking brought ashore

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’Shaking with cold’: tourists from Egypt boat sinking brought ashore

  • Egypt released video footage Wednesday of the latest tourists rescued from a boat that capsized off the country’s Red Sea coast, where at least four people lost their lives
CAIRO: Egypt released video footage Wednesday of the latest tourists rescued from a boat that capsized off the country’s Red Sea coast, where at least four people lost their lives.
Seven people remain missing more than two days after the “Sea Story” was struck by a wave and overturned in the middle of the night.
The vessel had set off Sunday from Port Ghalib, near Marsa Alam in the southeast, on a multi-day diving trip with 31 tourists — mostly Europeans, along with Chinese and US nationals — and a 13-member crew.
Thirty-three were rescued, including tourists seen in the video stepping off a speedboat, draped in blankets, at a marina near Marsa Alam.
“We were shaking with cold,” one unidentified man said in the footage.
The tourists who appeared in the video had spent at least 24 hours inside a cabin of the overturned vessel before rescuers found them Tuesday morning, according to a government source close to the rescue operations.
A military-led team on Tuesday rescued two Belgians, one Swiss national, one Finnish tourist and one Egyptian, authorities said.
Two survivors — one identified by authorities on camera as an Egyptian — were rolled out on stretchers, one of them conscious and speaking.
A Belgian tourist sobbed when she was greeted by an Egyptian general.
Red Sea governor Amr Hanafi said the boat capsized “suddenly and quickly within five-seven minutes” after being struck by a strong wave in the middle of the night, leaving some passengers unable to escape their cabins.
The Sea Story had been due to dock on Friday at the tourist resort of Hurghada, about 200 kilometers (124 miles) north of Marsa Alam.
Authorities in Egypt have said the vessel was fully licensed and had passed all inspection checks. A preliminary investigation showed no technical fault.
There were at least two similar boat accidents in the Marsa Alam area earlier this year. There were no fatalities.
The Red Sea coast is a major tourist destination in Egypt.
Dozens of dive boats crisscross between Red Sea coral reefs and islands off Egypt’s eastern coast every day, where safety regulations are robust but unevenly enforced.

World reacts to Lebanon war ceasefire

Updated 4 min 22 sec ago
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World reacts to Lebanon war ceasefire

PARIS: World leaders have welcomed a ceasefire deal between Israel and Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, which came into force on Wednesday morning (0200 GMT).

The ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon will protect Israel from the threat of Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah and create the conditions for a “lasting calm,” US President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron said ahead of the truce coming into force.
“The announcement today will cease the fighting in Lebanon, and secure Israel from the threat of Hezbollah and other terrorist organizations operating from Lebanon,” the leaders said in a joint statement.
The United States and France will work “to ensure this arrangement is fully implemented” and lead international efforts for “capacity-building” of the Lebanese army, they added.
Biden welcomed the deal as “good news” and also said the US would lead a fresh effort to secure a truce between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza.
Macron said the Lebanon ceasefire should “open the path” for an ending to the war in Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanked the US president for his “involvement in securing the ceasefire agreement.”
He told Biden in a call that he appreciated the US leader’s “understanding that Israel will maintain its freedom of action in enforcing it,” according to Netanyahu’s office.
Ahead of Israel’s approval of the deal, Netanyahu said the “length of the ceasefire depends on what happens in Lebanon” and the truce would allow Israel to “intensify” pressure on Hamas and focus on the “Iranian threat.”
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said the ceasefire was a “fundamental step” toward restoring stability in the region.
Thanking France and the US for their involvement, Mikati also reiterated his government’s commitment to “strengthen the army’s presence in the south.”
Iran, a backer of both Hezbollah and Hamas, welcomed the end of Israel’s “aggression” in Lebanon, after the ceasefire came into force.
“Welcoming the news” of the end of Israel’s “aggression against Lebanon,” foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said, stressing Iran’s “firm support for the Lebanese government, nation and resistance.”

Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri said the group “appreciates” Lebanon’s right to reach an agreement that protects its people, and it hopes for a deal to end the war in Gaza.

“Hamas appreciates the right of Lebanon and Hezbollah to reach an agreement that protects the people of Lebanon and we hope that this agreement will pave the way to reaching an agreement that ends the war of genocide against our people in Gaza,” Abu Zuhri told Reuters.
China said it was “paying close attention to the current situation in Lebanon and Israel.”
“We support all efforts conducive to easing tensions and achieving peace and welcome the agreement reached by relevant parties on a ceasefire,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock welcomed the deal, hailing it as “a ray of hope for the entire region.”
“People on both sides of the border want to live in genuine and lasting security,” Baerbock said, calling the deal “a success for diplomacy.”
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer praised a “long overdue” ceasefire that would “provide some measure of relief to the civilian populations” of both Israel and Lebanon.
Calling for the truce to be “turned into a lasting political solution in Lebanon,” Starmer vowed to be at the “forefront of efforts to break the ongoing cycle of violence in pursuit of a long-term, sustainable peace in the Middle East.”
EU chief Ursula von der Leyen hailed the “very encouraging news” of the ceasefire, saying it would increase Lebanon’s “internal security and stability.”
The announcement was welcome news “first and foremost for the Lebanese and Israeli people affected by the fighting,” Von der Leyen said.
“Lebanon will have an opportunity to increase internal security and stability thanks to Hezbollah’s reduced influence,” she said.
A top UN official welcomed the ceasefire agreement, but warned that “considerable work lies ahead” to implement the deal.
“Nothing less than the full and unwavering commitment of both parties is required,” said UN special coordinator for Lebanon, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert.

Jordan said the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hezbollah should prompt greater international efforts to bring an end to the war in Gaza.
In an official statement, the kingdom said the move was also a first step towards reversing a dangerous escalation of tensions across the region that had threatened peace and security.

Iraq welcomed the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon, calling on the international community to act urgently to end Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza.
A foreign ministry statement called for “multiplying international efforts to avoid any new escalation” along the Israel-Lebanon border, while also urging “serious, urgent steps to stop the continued massacres and violations against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip.”

Turkey said that it was ready to give Lebanon the “necessary support for the establishment of internal peace” hours after a ceasefire with Israel came into force.


Israeli strikes on Gaza Strip leave 15 dead, medics say

Updated 27 November 2024
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Israeli strikes on Gaza Strip leave 15 dead, medics say

CAIRO: Israeli military strikes across the Gaza Strip killed 15 people on Wednesday, some of them in a school housing displaced people, medics in Gaza said, adding that the fatalities included two sons of a former Hamas spokesman.
Health officials in the Hamas-run enclave said eight Palestinians were killed and dozens of others wounded in an Israeli strike that hit the Al-Tabeaeen School, which was sheltering displaced families in Gaza City. Among those killed were two sons of former Hamas spokesman, Fawzi Barhoum, according to medics and Barhoum himself.
In the Shejaia suburb of Gaza City, another strike killed four people, while three people were killed in an Israeli air strike in Beit Lahiya on the northern edge of the enclave where army forces have been operating since last month.
Separately, a ceasefire between Israel and Iran-backed group Hezbollah came into effect on Wednesday after both sides accepted an agreement brokered by the US and France, a rare victory for diplomacy in a region shaken by two wars for over a year.
Iran-backed Hezbollah militants began firing missiles at Israel in solidarity with Hamas after the Palestinian militant group attacked Israel in October of 2023, killing around 1,200 people and capturing over 250 hostages, Israel has said, triggering the Gaza war.
Israel’s 13-month campaign in Gaza has left nearly 44,200 people dead and displaced nearly all the enclave’s population at least once, according to Gaza health officials.
Months of attempts to negotiate a ceasefire have yielded scant progress and negotiations are now on hold, with mediator Qatar saying it has told the two warring parties it would suspend its efforts until the sides are prepared to make concessions.
US President Joe Biden said on Tuesday his administration was pushing for a ceasefire in Gaza and that it was possible that Saudi Arabia and Israel could normalize relations.


Israeli military says it fired to stop suspects reaching Lebanon no-go zone

Updated 27 November 2024
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Israeli military says it fired to stop suspects reaching Lebanon no-go zone

DUBAI: Israeli forces on Wednesday fired at several vehicles with suspects to prevent them from reaching a no-go zone in Lebanese territory and the suspects moved away, the Israeli military said in a statement, hours after a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanese militant group Hezbollah came into effect at 0200 GMT.


Hezbollah says launched drones ahead of ceasefire at ‘sensitive military targets’ in Tel Aviv

Updated 27 November 2024
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Hezbollah says launched drones ahead of ceasefire at ‘sensitive military targets’ in Tel Aviv

BEIRUT, Lebanon: Lebanon’s Hezbollah said it launched drones at “sensitive military targets” in Tel Aviv on Tuesday evening, after deadly Israeli strikes in Beirut and as news of a ceasefire deal was announced.
“In response to the targeting of the capital Beirut and the massacres committed by the Israeli enemy against civilians,” Hezbollah launched “drones at a group of sensitive military targets in the city of Tel Aviv and its suburbs,” the group said in a statement.