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WASHINGTON: Coronavirus deaths on Saturday surged past 150,000 worldwide with nearly a quarter of them in the United States, where new rallies against lockdown orders were being held after President Donald Trump lent his support to the protesters.
According to a tally, more than 2,251,690 declared cases have been registered in 193 countries and territories since the epidemic first emerged in China in December. Of these cases, at least 497,600 are now considered recovered.
In the United States, now the epicentre of the pandemic, the death toll stood at 37,079 with 706,779 infections. At least 59,672 patients have recovered.
Italy is the next most-affected country with 22,745 deaths and 172,434 confirmed infections. It is followed by Spain with 20,043 fatalities and 191,726 confirmed infections, France with 18,681 deaths and 147,969 infections and Britain with 14,576 deaths and 108,692 cases. China has to date declared 4,632 deaths and 82,719 cases.
Evidence, however, is mounting that social distancing successfully slowed the pandemic after more than half of humanity — 4.5 billion people — were confined to their homes.
Governments around the world are now grappling with when and how to ease lockdowns that have crippled the global economy.
More than 22,000 deaths recorded in Italy
Demonstrators in three US states staged rallies this week to demand an end to the restrictions, with the largest protest in Michigan attracting 3,000 people — some of whom were armed.
Trump has largely left decisions on easing lockdowns to state officials even as he laid out guidelines for a staged reopening of the national economy.
But his call to “liberate” Michigan, Minnesota and Virginia in a series of tweets on Friday were rebuked by the Democratic leaders of all three states.
Many countries are testing only the most serious cases and the number of confirmed infections is likely to be only a fraction of the true total.
Virtually no corner of the world has been left untouched, with deaths in Africa passing 1,000.
Nigeria announced the death of President Muhammadu Buhari’s top aide, the highest-profile person to succumb to the virus in Africa’s most populous nation.
Meanwhile, many of the world’s 260 million Orthodox Christians are preparing to mark Easter without attending church services.
The Russian Orthodox Church has asked the faithful to celebrate at home, even though many places of worship will remain open. Services in Turkey will be closed to the public and broadcast on the internet.
In Zimbabwe, mass rallies and military parades to mark the country’s 40th anniversary of independence from British colonial rule were cancelled.
And Buckingham Palace announced that Queen Elizabeth II will not mark her birthday on Tuesday with a traditional gun salute.
Britain’s overall death toll is officially over 15,500, but a charity says the number of virus deaths in care homes alone could be as high as 7,500, five times more than estimated.
China’s death toll jumped to 4,632 on Friday after it raised by 50 per cent the number of fatalities for the city of Wuhan, where the respiratory disease first emerged late last year.
Trump, who has angrily shot back at claims he reacted too slowly to the virus threat, has accused Beijing of downplaying the impact of the disease within its borders.
“It is far higher than that and far higher than the US, not even close!” he tweeted.
Donald J. Trump✔@realDonaldTrump
China has just announced a doubling in the number of their deaths from the Invisible Enemy. It is far higher than that and far higher than the U.S., not even close!
Trump did not offer evidence to back his claim, but pressure has mounted on Beijing to come clean over its handling of the initial outbreak.
Leaders in France and Britain have also questioned China’s management of the crisis but Beijing hit back, saying it had not concealed information about the illness.
Signs that the outbreak could be easing in parts of Europe prompted Switzerland, Denmark and Finland to begin reopening shops and schools this week.
Germany’s health minister said on Friday that the virus was “under control” after 3,400 deaths, and the country is now beginning the delicate task of lifting some restrictions without triggering a secondary outbreak.
Some shops will be allowed to reopen Monday (today), and some children will return to school within weeks.
Parts of Italy began emerging from lockdown too, with Venice residents strolling around quiet canals.
Iran also allowed some Tehran businesses to reopen on Saturday despite the Middle East’s deadliest outbreak, as many faced a bitter choice between risking infection and economic ruin.
“How can I stay keep staying home? My family is hungry,” said Hamdollah Mahmoudi, 45, a shopworker in Tehran’s Grand Bazaar. “And one gets mentally sick without work.”
But Spain, where the death toll topped 20,000, has extended its strict lockdown, while Japan, Britain and Mexico have all expanded their current movement restrictions.