Coronavirus updates, May 5: Latest news on the COVID-19 pandemic from Pakistan and around the world
Nationwide death toll crosses 500, confirmed cases surge past 22,000, more than 250,000 dead globally
Updated Tuesday May 05 2020
The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Pakistan rose to 22,237 on Tuesday after new infections were confirmed in the country.
The province-wise break up of the total number of cases as of 8pm, May 5, is as follows:
Total confirmed cases: 22,237
• Sindh: 8,189
• Punjab: 8,133
• Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: 3,499
• Balochistan: 1,495
• Islamabad Capital Territory: 464
• Gilgit-Baltistan: 386
• AJK: 71
Deaths: 514
• Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: 194
• Sindh: 148
• Balochistan: 21
• Gilgit-Baltistan: 3
• Punjab: 144
• Islamabad Capital Territory: 4
Officials have recorded more than 3.5 million cases and more than 250,000 deaths since the virus emerged in China in December.
Read on for the latest updates from Pakistan and around the world.
Disclaimer: There may be some discrepancy in the number of confirmed cases reported at the country level due to differences in figures quoted by federal and provincial authorities.
Geo News is constantly gathering fresh information from concerned authorities and striving to keep our readers up to date with the most accurate information available.
Orange: General updates coming in from Pakistan
Red: Reports on new cases in Pakistan
Maroon: Reports on new deaths in Pakistan
Green: Reports on recovered patients in Pakistan
END OF LIVE UPDATES FOR MAY 5
Live updates for May 6 will begin here.
12:50am (May 6) — Lahore, Pakistan — Punjab dismisses claims of reopening schools from June 1
11:58pm — Quetta, Pakistan — Balochistan's cases at a glance
11:23pm — Karachi, Pakistan — Sindh govt advises against resumption of railway services
Sindh's transport minister, Owais Shah, has warned Railways Minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed against the resumption of railway services, saying: "This is not the time to run trains; it is a time to save people's lives from the coronavirus."
"A resumption of train services will lead to huge crowds gathering at railway stations.
"These crowds may lead to a spread of the disease," said Shah.
The minister said that the federal government should avoid "playing with people's lives" just to satisfy their "greed for money".
"As it is, due to the federal government's negligence, a continuous rise in the number of cases is being seen," he said.
"It is a state's job to protect the lives of people, not play with them like this."
10:51pm — Islamabad, Pakistan — More than 80% business consumers to benefit from PM scheme for electricity bills
Hammad Azhar, the minister for industries and production, has announced that about 80% of electricity users who run businesses will benefit from the prime minister's scheme for small businesses which "will be paying the electricity bills" of 3.5 million businesses in the country over the next three months.
10:42pm — Islamabad, Pakistan — WHO reminds people of the importance of clean hands on Hand Hygiene Day
10:30pm — Washington, USA — Doctor who treated first US COVID patient fears second wave
The doctor who treated the first COVID-19 patient in the United States said Monday he fears a second outbreak of the disease when lockdown measures are lifted.
George Diaz's first patient, diagnosed in January in Washington state, has already recovered after receiving remdesivir, an experimental drug that the US approved on Friday for emergency use.
While he feels encouraged by this anti-viral, Diaz emphasised that isolation to avoid contagion remains the "most effective" treatment for COVID-19 right now.
Since that first case in January, the US has overtaken all other countries to have by far the highest caseload — about 1.2 million — as well as the most deaths, around 69,000.
Despite forecasts of a worsening death toll, some states are already reopening to try to ease the economic strain of shelter-in-place orders that have put more than 30 million Americans out of work in six weeks.
"What worries me is that when the economy starts to reopen, we are going to see a second outbreak that is perhaps as big as the first, and the first one was very difficult for us and for the whole world," DÃaz told reporters during a video meeting organized by the State Department.
"And more than anything, I am concerned that I don´t know if we are going to have the resources to handle a second outbreak," he added.
Remdesivir, made by Gilead Sciences, was shown in a major clinical trial to shorten the time to recovery in some coronavirus patients.
Diaz said that, pending development of a vaccine, remdesivir appears to act against the virus, but he cautioned that the drug must be used very wisely.
It should not be a crutch for people to say, "'I can now do whatever I want because we have a treatment.' No," Diaz warned.
They must continue to follow guidance on social distancing, he said.
09:24pm — Karachi, Pakistan — 'Sindh to announce special package for doctors': PPP
08:51pm — Islamabad, Pakistan — PIMS' Dr Sarwat 'admitted to dedicated private room', says Dr Zafar
Following a plea earlier in the day by Dr Sarwat — who works at Islamabad's PIMS hospital — in which she said she was being kept under miserable conditions as a COVID-19 patient and asked for the government's assistance, Dr Zafar Mirza has assured everyone that she has been admitted to a "dedicated private room".
Dr Mirza, the premier's aide on health, said the government "cares for you and we mean it".
He said instructions to "improve the state of affairs" had been given to the hospital management.
08:32pm — Islamabad, Pakistan — NCC meeting to debate on lockdown strategy tomorrow: Faraz
Information minister Shibli Faraz has announced that the lockdown strategy will be debated among the provinces at a National Coordination Committee meeting tomorrow.
In his media briefing today, Faraz said that Federal Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar had informed the cabinet that a meeting comprising of all the chief ministers would take place tomorrow [Wednesday] to decide on how to ease the lockdown after May 9.
Talking about the post-lockdown strategy he said: "The prime minister's focus from day one was on the people who are [financially] vulnerable — the daily wagers."
"Whenever the lockdown eases, people should follow the SOPs and safety measures because we cannot afford a relapse of the pandemic," he said.
"China was able to stem the spread of the virus because the political system of the country is different, we cannot apply the same strategy here," Faraz said.
"Prime Minister's Special Assistant on Poverty Alleviation Dr Sania Nishtar had informed the cabinet that nearly eight million families are being provided financial aid" under the Ehsaas Programme, Faraz added.
8:07pm — London, UK — Britain overtakes Italy with Europe's highest coronavirus death toll
The United Kingdom has overtaken Italy to report the highest official death toll from the new coronavirus in Europe, figures released showed, increasing pressure on Prime Minister Boris Johnson over his response to the crisis, Reuters reported.
Weekly figures from Britain’s Office for National Statistics (ONS) added more than 7,000 deaths in England and Wales in the week to April 24, raising the total for the United Kingdom to 32,313.
While different ways of counting make comparisons with other countries difficult, the figure confirmed Britain was among those hit worst by a pandemic that has killed more than 250,000 worldwide.
“The UK has been hit very hard in this wave of COVID-19 and each death will (have) brought sadness to families,” said Professor James Naismith of Oxford University, who is director of the Rosalind Franklin Institute of medical research.
8:00pm — Peshawar, Pakistan — KP reports nine more deaths, several new cases
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa health department has reported nine more deaths in the province, taking the grim total to 194. Of the deceased, five were from Peshawar and one each from Charsadda, Mardan, Mansehra and Haripur.
As many as 211 new cases in the last 24 hours were also reported, taking the tally of infected to 3,499.
07:12pm — Lahore, Pakistan — PMA president says extended lockdown only way to curb spread of virus
Pakistan Medical Association President Prof Dr Ashraf Nizami has declared that an extended lockdown is the only way the spread of the coronavirus can be curbed.
In a press briefing in Lahore, the doctor expressed alarm at the high number of doctors falling prey to COVID-19. "So far 509 medical professionals have been diagnosed with the disease which is a huge number," he said.
He said a rising number of patients was being witnessed in hospitals, many of which had now "stopped treating other patients".
He recommended that every city have 1000-bed infectious diseases hospitals.
Nizami also requested the State Bank governor to take note of the long queues of people outside banks.
He suggested that a mechanism be implemented under which traffic challans can be paid online. Similarly, all forms of businesses must be conducted online.
06:52pm — Gilgit, Gilgit-Baltistan — Region reports 14 new cases
The Gilgit-Baltistan health department has reported a rise in the number of cases by 14, taking the tally of infected to 386.
Three more people were also reported to have recovered from the disease, taking the total recoveries to 282.
06:47pm — Karachi, Pakistan — 'Sindh govt has until 15th of Ramadan,' says trader association president on business SOPs
All City Tajir Ittehad (ACTI) chairman Sharjeel Goplani has given an ultimatum to the Sindh govt to issue detailed standard operating procedures under which businesses can reopen by the 15th of Ramadan, after which shops will reopen regardless.
"The 15th of Ramadan is our last deadline after which we will reopen shops," said Goplani during a press conference alongside PTI leaders in Karachi.
"We have brought our request to the prime minister with the hope of finding justice," he added.
He said that the business community had already "given e-commerce a go".
"Our families are going hungry. You can arrest us if you want," said Goplani.
Meanwhile, Sindh MPA Khurram Sher Zaman of the PTI noted that Karachi is a city which fuels the entire country's economy.
"The prime minister has issued directives to ease the hardships faced by traders but the Sindh government is on a different trajectory," said Zaman.
He said that the prime minister has expressed his intent on visiting Karachi next week.
The PTI MPA said that the Sindh government had spoken about issuing SOPs for businesses but nothing has been done to this effect yet.
He said that if the traders open their shops, the PTI government will lend its support to them.
06:21pm — Karachi, Pakistan — Sindh governor to get retested tomorrow for COVID-19 after nine-day quarantine
Sindh governor Imran Ismail has announced he will get retested tomorrow for COVID-19 after a nine-day quarantine period.
Ismail said he is feeling "a lot better" and earlier symptoms like coughing, fever and a little shortness of breath are "now fading out".
06:06pm — Islamabad, Pakistan — More than 200 NADRA registration vans facilitating Ehsaas Cash disbursement
The prime minister's aide on poverty alleviation, Sania Nishter has said that mobile NADRA registration vans are operational "to facilitate fast-track verification of Ehsaas Emergency Cash beneficiaries".
According to NADRA, 200 such vans are operational across the country.
05:54pm — Tehran, Iran — Iran says virus infections near 100,000
Iran has announced that confirmed coronavirus infections have reached almost 100,000 in the country as fresh cases picked up again after a brief drop in recent days.
"The number of confirmed infections with this disease is now close to 100,000," health ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour said in televised remarks.
"We lost 63 of our countrymen in the past 24 hours, reaching a total of 6,340 deaths from COVID-19 to date," he added.
Jahanpour said that another 1,323 people tested positive for the virus during the same period, bringing the overall number to 99,970.
Two-thirds of the fresh cases were "those sampled as outpatients" or family members of those infected, Jahanpour said.
05:39pm — Paris, France — Coronavirus toll at 1100 GMT
The novel coronavirus has killed at least 251,512 people since the outbreak first emerged in China last December, according to a tally from official sources compiled by AFP at 1100 GMT.
More than 3,595,970 cases were registered in 195 countries and territories. Of these, at least 1,104,600 are now considered recovered.
The tallies, using data collected by AFP from national authorities and information from the World Health Organization (WHO), probably reflect only a fraction of the actual number of infections.
Many countries are testing only the most serious cases.
The United States has the highest number of total deaths with 68,934 out of 1,180,634 cases. At least 187,180 have been declared recovered.
Italy has the second highest toll with 29,079 deaths out of 211,938 cases, followed by Britain with 28,734 deaths from 190,584 cases, Spain 25,613 deaths and 219,329 cases and France with 25,201 deaths and 169,462 cases.
China — excluding Hong Kong and Macau — has to date declared 4,633 deaths and 82,881 cases. It has 77,853 recovered cases.
Europe has a total of 145,612 deaths from 1,583,788 cases, the United States and Canada have 72,897 deaths and 1,241,406 cases, Latin America and the Caribbean have 14,415 deaths and 272,061 cases, Asia has 9,506 deaths and 252,541 cases, the Middle East has 7,115 deaths and 191,152 cases, Africa has 1,843 deaths from 46,857 cases, and Oceania 124 deaths from 8,174 cases.
Please note that due to corrections by national authorities or late publication of data, the figures updated over the past 24-hour period may not correspond exactly to the previous day's tallies.
5:10pm - Rome, Italy — Return to normality slow due to fears of coronavirus resurgence
Grandparents hugged their grandchildren, toddlers rushed excitedly through parks and factories revived their long-stalled production lines as Italy started the slow process of unwinding Europe’s longest coronavirus lockdown.
Nearly two months after ordering Italians to stay home in an effort to slow one of the worst outbreaks of the new coronavirus in the world, the government on Monday cautiously eased a few restrictions, while keeping many others in place.
Despite more than 29,000 Italians dying of COVID-19 since the outbreak emerged on Feb. 21, some people have nonetheless complained that the rollback is too timid, while others worry that complacency will lead to a fresh wave of infections.
4:50pm – Karachi, Pakistan — Jinnah Hospital teams up with NIH to treat patients with plasma therapy
The National Institute of Health and Jinnah Hospital have reached an agreement over the treatment of coronavirus patients with plasma therapy.
NIH Incharge Dr Tahir Shamsi said that the under-treatment patients at the hospital in Karachi will receive plasma injections.
He said that so far, two patients have received plasma therapy in Sindh, after which their condition is improving steadily.Watch: Poultry workers from Haitian community suffer due to pandemic
4:35pm- Geneva, Switzerland — WHO urges countries to investigate early COVID-19 cases
The World Health Organization said Tuesday that it was "not surprising" that had a coronavirus case had emerged in December in France and urged countries to investigate any other early suspicious cases.
"This gives a whole new picture on everything," WHO spokesman Christian Lindmeier told a UN briefing in Geneva, referring to the French reports.
"The findings help to better understand the potential virus circulation of COVID-19," he added, saying other possible earlier cases could emerge after retesting samples.
4:20pm- Islamabad, Pakistan — Railways to operate on a limited scale from May 10
According to an official notification, Pakistan Railways will begin its limited scale operations from May 10.
In the first phase, 15 trains will be made operational across different parts of Pakistan.
The notification urged public to exercise caution and practice social distancing while commuting.
4:00pm- Quetta, Balochistan — Govt employees to get paid on May 21
The Balochistan government issued a notification today, according to which the government employees will get salary of the running month on May 21.
According to the finance department’s notification, pensioners will also get their pension money on the said date.
Meanwhile, Balochistan government spokesperson Liaquat Shhawani said that the province has asked for ventilators from the National Disaster Management Authority.
He said that the province is running short on ventilators and has to ramp up their numbers against rising coronavirus cases in Balochistan.
“In the last few days, ratio of local transmission of cases remained 88%,” he said, adding that the recovery rate is 15% in Balochistan.
3:45pm - Madrid, Spain — Coronavirus tally stabilises but economic cost high
Spain reported its third day in a row of coronavirus deaths under 200, but a record number of people claiming social security benefits for April showed the cost to the economy of bringing the epidemic under control.
But the weak coalition government of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez must seek parliamentary approval on Wednesday for another extension of the state of emergency which gives him wide powers to enforce the exit from lockdown.
The health ministry reported 185 deaths from coronavirus in 24 hours, the third day in a row of a toll below 200. The overall number of diagnosed cases rose to 219,329 up from 218,011 the day before.
3:25pm - Karachi, Pakistan — Sindh govt orders 100 more ventilators
Sindh government Spokesperson Murtaza Wahab said that the provincial government has ordered 100 more ventilators on Tuesday.
Wahab said that the Sindh Health Department has decided to order 163 ventilators in all, adding that the province will receive 36 more ventilators during the month.
3:15pm- Islamabad, Pakistan — Doctor tests positive for coronavirus at PIMS
Dr Sarwat from Pakistan Institute Of Medical Sciences said in a video statement today that she has tested positive for the virus.
Dr Sarwat said that her colleague tested positive three days ago, following which she also suffered from the symptoms.
In her message, she said that after the test results they had urged the hospital to seal the ward.
3:00pm - Karachi, Pakistan — 42 coronavirus patients recover in Sindh, provincial tally of recoveries at 1,671
CM Sindh Murad Ali Shah said that 42 patients were discharged today after recovering from the coronavirus.
Following the development, the number of recovered patients across the province reached 1,671.
2:55pm- Beirut, Lebanon — Virus shutdown to be extended over fears of second wave
Lebanon is set to extend its lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus by two weeks until May 24 with the prime minister warning on Tuesday that a failure to comply with a gradual easing of restrictions risked a second wave of infections.
Lebanon has recorded 740 cases of the novel coronavirus and 25 deaths. The government has started to gradually ease some restrictions this week, allowing restaurants to open but at only 30% of their capacity.
2:35pm – Karachi, Pakistan — 307 new cases recorded across province as tally reaches 8,189
Chief Minister Sindh Murad Ali Shah said that the province has recorded 307 new cases within the past 24 hours, after which the provincial tally reached 8,189.
According to CM Sindh, out of 2,250 tests more than 300 tested positive.
He said that the provincial death toll reached 148 after 11 deaths were recorded across the province.
2:16pm - Lahore, Pakistan — Punjab records 491 new cases, provincial tally reaches 8,133
Punjab Healthcare department spokesperson said that the province recorded 491 new cases today, after which the provincial tally reached 8,133.
He said that so far the province has recorded 44 deaths.
The spokesperson said that the tally of recovered stood at 2,680, while 25 are in a critical position.2:10pm - London, UK — COVID-19 death toll rises above 32,000, highest in Europe: data
More than 32,000 people in the United Kingdom have died with suspected COVID-19, the highest official toll yet reported in Europe, according to data published on Tuesday.
The Office for National Statistics said 29,648 deaths had taken place as of April 24 in England and Wales with COVID-19 mentioned in death certificates.
Including deaths for Scotland and Northern Ireland, the official toll now stands at 32,313.
2:00pm – Islamabad, Pakistan — Govt to pursue local manufacturing amid lockdown crisis: Razak Dawood
Aide to PM on Commerce and Investment Abdul Razak Dawood said that the Ministry of Commerce is pursuing changes in the tariff structure in the upcoming budget.
The PM’s adviser said that the government will now focus on local manufacturing, based on ‘Make in Pakistan’ policy.
1:45pm- Hyderabad, Pakistan — Coronavirus patient injected with plasma in ‘successful’ experiment
A coronavirus patient was given plasma therapy which appeared to be successful, said Medical Superintendent Civil Hospital Hyderabad Dr Shahid Junejo.
The MS Civil Hospital said that the condition of the patient improved after injecting him with plasma.
He said that the patient’s vitals such as oxygen saturation, blood pressure, pulse rate have reached normal levels.
The doctor said that the decision to go ahead with the plasma therapy came in after consultation with Vice Chancellor Liaquat Medical University Professor Bekha Ram.
1:25 pm - Karachi, Pakistan — SIUT conducts internal inquiry regarding deceased Dr Furqan
The Sindh Institute of Urology & Transplantation, in an explanatory statement today, said that it conducted an internal inquiry regarding Dr Furqan-ul-Haq, who reportedly died due to lack of adequate medical attention.
The SIUT spokesperson said that the former practitioner of the Karachi Institute of Heart Diseases (KIHD) died of the coronavirus and it emerged that he was not admitted due to lack of medical facilities.
He said that there was no record of Dr Furqan arriving at the institute’s emergency department and the reception.
The spokesperson said that the SIUT has questioned its senior staff members in relation to the matter, adding that even security footage did not provide any evidence in this regard.
1:10pm — Islamabad, Pakistan — Federal cabinet meets to discuss situation arising out of coronavirus
A meeting of the federal cabinet with Prime Minister Imran Khan in the chair is underway in Islamabad.
The meeting will discuss the situation arising out of the coronavirus outbreak in the country and the economic challenges faced by the country due to the pandemic .
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1:00pm — Hyderabad, Karachi — Sindh govt establishes field isolation centre for patients in Hyderabad
12:50pm — Lahore, Pakistan — Stranded Pakistanis in India start arriving via Wagha Border
Pakistanis stranded in India started arriving via the Wagha Border on Tuesday.
According to sources, 193 Pakistanis arrived at the border after spending the night in Amritsar.
The repatriated citizens will be quarantined for 72 hours upon arrival.
WATCH: Chaos outside liquor stores as India eases virus lockdown
12:35pm — Singapore, Singapore — Health ministry confirms 632 new cases
Singapore's health ministry on Tuesday confirmed 632 new coronavirus cases, taking the city-state's tally of infections to 19,410
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12:20pm — Paris, France — France hoping to deploy StopCovid app by June 2
France is hoping to deploy its state-supported "StopCOVID" contact-tracing app by June 2, the Minister for Digital Affairs, Cedric O
"We hope to have something by June 2," Cedric O said. "We are pursuing our roadmap."
France's state-supported "StopCOVID" contact-tracing app should enter its testing phase in the week of May 11 when the country starts to unwind its lockdown, the minister said earlier this month.
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Pakistan among least prepared countries to tackle virus challenge: UNDP
Pakistan is among those countries that are least prepared to tackle the coronavirus challenge, according to a report by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) based on virus-related data from around the world said on Tuesday.
According to UNDP, for every 10,000 people, Pakistan has only 9.8 physicians, five nurses and only six hospital beds.
More developed countries have on average 55 hospital beds, over 30 physicians, and 81 nurses per 10,000 people. The least developed nations on average have seven hospital beds, 2.5 physicians, and six nurses.
Read the full story here.
11:45am — Sydney, Australia — PM says new coronavirus most likely emerged from Chinese wildlife market
The most likely source of the novel coronavirus was a wildlife market in China, Australian Prime Minister said on Tuesday.
US President Donald Trump last week said he was confident the coronavirus may have originated in a Chinese virology lab.
Morrison, however, said Australia has seen no evidence to change its view that it originated from a wildlife market, though he would not rule out Trump's theory.
"We can't rule out any of these arrangements that's what I said the other day, but the most likely has been in a wildlife wet market," Morrison said.
Polio eradication call centre in Pakistan expanded to help answer questions about COVID-19
11:30am — Karachi, Pakistan — SBP directs banks to use cash that has completed 14-day quarantine period
The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has directed banks to use cash that has completed the 14-day quarantine period.
“Consequently, the credit given to banks on account of quarantined cash would be reversed on the fifteenth (15th) day from each reported date,” the SBP said in a circular.
The SBP, in a previous circular issued on March 23, had directed all banks to disinfect, seal and quarantine the cash collected from hospitals and clinics.
11:20am — Quetta, Pakistan — Balochistan govt extends lockdown till May 19
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11:10am — Lahore, Pakistan — Punjab govt to help artists struggling due to lockdown
The Punjab government has announced it will financially help artists who have been struggling due to the coronavirus lockdown in the country.
“The Punjab government will help 3,000 artists,” Chief Minister Usman Buzdar said in a statement on Tuesday.
He added the artists will receive Rs15,000 to Rs20,000 as financial aid.
11:00am — Islamabad, Pakistan — PM Imran to chair federal cabinet meeting
Prime Minister Imran Khan will chair a meeting of the federal cabinet today to discuss easing the lockdown in the country.
The cabinet will also discuss the economic challenges faced by the country due to the pandemic along with the relief package given under the Ehsaas Programme and power concession to small businesses.
The cabinet will also be briefed about the production of face masks, sanitisers and protective equipment.
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10:40am — New Delhi, India — India records largest one-day spike with 3,900 new cases
10:30am — Islamabad, Pakistan — PIA flight carrying repatriated Pakistanis from Turkey arrives
A special flight of Pakistan International Airline (PIA) from Turkey arrived in Islamabad on Tuesday, airport sources said.
According to sources, 284 passengers arrived at the Islamabad airport from Istanbul where they were examined by a special team of doctors.
Sources added two passengers have been shifted to PIMS after they complained of not feeling well.
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10:15am — Islamabad, Pakistan — CAA gives green light to Air Arabia to bring repatriated Pakistanis
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has given Air Arabia flying repatriated Pakistanis to land at Multan Airport.
The special flight carrying more than 200 Pakistanis will arrive on May 10, the CAA said, adding the flight crew will not be allowed to disembark once the flight lands.
10:00am — Beijing, China — China reports one new coronavirus case
China reported one new coronavirus case for May 4, down from three the day before, data from the national health authority showed on Tuesday.
The new case was imported, the National Health Commission said.
The number of confirmed cases in China has reached 82,881 with no new deaths reported.
9:45am — Lahore, Pakistan — Pakistanis stranded in India to arrive via Wahga Border
105 Pakistanis stranded in India will arrive via the Wahga Border today after they were stuck due to border closure.
All those arriving will be sent to a quarantine centre on arrival.
Leading US infectious disease expert Dr Fauci says 'no scientific evidence virus was made in a Chinese lab'
“If you look at the evolution of the virus in bats and what's out there now, [the scientific evidence] is very, very strongly leaning toward this could not have been artificially or deliberately manipulated … Everything about the stepwise evolution over time strongly indicates that [this virus] evolved in nature and then jumped species,” Dr Athony Fauci told National Geographic in an exclusive interview.
9:30am — Geneva, Switzerland — WHO says has no proof from US on 'speculative' Wuhan lab claims
The World Health Organisation has said Washington has provided no evidence to support "speculative" claims by the US president that the new coronavirus originated in a Chinese lab.
"We have not received any data or specific evidence from the United States government relating to the purported origin of the virus — so from our perspective, this remains speculative," WHO emergencies director Michael Ryan told a virtual briefing.
Read the full story here.
9:15am — Islamabad, Pakistan — Islamabad reports 49 new cases
Confirmed cases in the country jumped to 21,501 after new cases were reported in Islamabad.
According to the national dashboard, Islamabad reported 49 cases in the last 24 hours taking the tally to 464.
US COVID-19 deaths rise by 1,015, lowest in a month: Johns Hopkins
Global coronavirus death toll tops 250,000
Global coronavirus deaths rose past a quarter of a million on Monday after infections topped 3.5 million as several countries began easing lockdowns designed to contain the pandemic.
North America and European countries accounted for most of the new deaths and cases reported in recent days, but numbers were rising from smaller bases in Latin America, Africa and Russia.
According to a Reuters tally, globally, there were 3,914 new deaths and 75,646 new cases over the past 24 hours, taking total deaths to 250,152 and cases to 3.59 million. At least 1.1 million people have recovered from the illness, according to available official data.
8:40am — Wellington, New Zealand — NZ records no new cases for a second day
New Zealand recorded no new coronavirus cases for a second day in a row on Tuesday, and Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the outcome of her discussions with Australia on a travel bubble between the two countries would be announced later in the day.
Ardern joined Australia's coronavirus cabinet meeting on Tuesday as the neighbouring countries discuss reopening their borders to travel following their successes in containing the disease.
8:30am — Berlin, Germany — Confirmed coronavirus cases rise by 685 to 163
The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany increased by 685 to 163,860, data from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases showed on Tuesday.
The reported death toll rose by 139 to 6,831, the tally showed.
11:25pm/May 4 — Quetta, Balochistan — Province extends lockdown till May 19
The Balochistan government extended the provincial lockdown till May 19 as the COVID-19 cases are on the rise, a statement said.
Earlier, the provincial spokesperson Liaquat Shahwani warned that the government would be forced to extend the lockdown if the people fail to follow SOPs to stem the virus.
11:10pm/May 4— Apple and Google say their upcoming contract-tracing tool to be restricted to one public health app per country
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For our May 4 coronavirus coverage click here.
