CoViD-19: 763 Infected in S. Korea; more deaths in: Korea, Ira..

Source: China Daily, People's Daily, CGTN, SCMP, Global Times, Xinhua, iFeng, BBC, CNN, CBSNews, BusinessInsider, CNBC,Aljazeera, JobTube, Majdi      

COVID-19, Largest Health Emergency in China's History

President Xi: Coronavirus 'largest public health emergency' since the founding of communist China. 

"It has the fastest transmission, widest range of infection and has been the most difficult to prevent and control," President Xi said at a meeting on curbing the epidemic, according to state broadcaster CCTV.

763 Infected in South Korea, 7 Deaths

South Korean President Moon Jae-in said his government had increased its anti-virus alert level by one notch to "Red," the highest level, in response to the spread of the disease

The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported an additional 161 cases on Monday morning, bringing the total to 763 nationwide. Most of the new confirmed cases were reported in the city of Daegu.

An additional two people were said to have died, which brought the death toll to seven. 

South Korea's Stock Market Kospi index was down more than 2% in early trade while the Kosdaq fell 2.25%. 

Economic difficulty is imminent, Citi economists said in a Monday morning note. Fear of the virus is spreading throughout the country, at a much faster rate than the virus itself. 

A third person dies in Italy

A third person infected with the coronavirus died in Italy, a regional official said, as the government struggles to contain an outbreak of the illness in the north of the country with more than 130 cases reported since Friday.

Lombardy regional councillor Giulio Gallera told reporters the victim was an elderly woman from the province of Cremona, in the Lombardy region.  The woman was also suffering from cancer, Gallera said.

Elsewhere in Italy, Venice's famous carnival is going to be suspended due to the new coronavirus outbreak in northern Italy, the President of the Veneto Region Luca Zaia has said. 

Austria Stops Train from Italy

Austria denied entry to a train from Italy on suspicion that two of the travellers might be infected with the coronavirus, the train was now waiting at the Brenner Pass on Italian territory. "The further procedure is currently being discussed together with Italian authorities."

Iran, 43 Infections, 8 Deaths

Iran raises death toll from new virus to 8, infections to 43

Iran's health ministry raised the death toll from the new coronavirus to eight Sunday. There were now 43 confirmed cases of the illness in Iran. That's a jump from a Saturday's total of 28 confirmed cases and six fatalities.

The outbreak in Iran has centered mostly on the city of Qom, but spread rapidly over the past few days to people in four other cities, including the capital, Tehran. Iranians also went to the polls on Friday for nationwide parliamentary elections, with many voters wearing masks and stocking up on hand sanitizer.

Iran's health minister has said that travel from China brought the coronavirus to the Middle Eastern country. 

Saeed Namaki told state TV that the virus came from China to the holy city of Qom in central Iran. He said that one of the Iranian dead from the virus was a merchant who regularly shuttled between the two countries using indirect flights in recent weeks, after Iran stopped direct passenger flights to China.

Countries Close Iran Borders

Turkey, Pakistan and Armenia have closed their borders with Iran as the latter reported more coronavirus infections and deaths, prompting neighbouring Afghanistan to also introduce travel restrictions.

Third Death on cruise ship in Japan 

Japanese authorities Sunday said 57 more people on board the quarantined Diamond Princess have tested positive for the new coronavirus (COVID-19), bring total number of infection cases on the ship to 691 of 3,700 passenger and crew members. 

The country earlier has reported a third death related to the cruise ship, saying a Japanese male passenger in his 80s has died in hospital on Sunday. He was transferred to hospital after tested positive while onboard. 

After the end of a two-week quarantine on February 19, some of its passengers who tested negative for the virus have disembarked in batches. 

Israel bars 188 South Koreans Visitors from Entry

A diplomatic row erupted after Israel turned back a South Korean airliner, underscoring fear and tensions over the fast-spreading outbreak.

A Korean Air flight with 188 passengers that landed at Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion airport Saturday evening was taxied away from the terminal while authorities allowed only 11 Israelis to enter the country. The plane returned to South Korea with the rest of the passengers on Sunday, according to airline officials.

Israel has added South Korea and Japan to a list of Asian countries to which travel to and from Israel was being barred.

Elsewhere in Israel, nearly 200 Israeli pupils were ordered to begin a two-week quarantine after having come into contact with South Korean tourists who contracted the coronavirus, the education ministry has said.

Wuhan Hospital Doctor Dies 

R.I.P Xia Sisi, a 29-year-old doctor from gastroenterology department at Wuhan Caidian district People's Hospital, died of COVID-19 on Sunday while fighting in the front lines against the epidemic, according to the hospital. 

Shanghai Home Loans Burden, Reduced

Shanghai employees unable to pay home loans on time due to the coronavirus will not be counted as loan defaults from Feb to Jun: officials from Shanghai Housing Provident Fund 

7000 Yuan Reward to Back-To-Work Staff

Apple supplier Foxconn's factory in Zhengzhou said it would award 7000 Yuan to back-to-work staff and give bonuses in stages to workers who clock in for up to 55 days. Foxconn rolled out incentives to encourage workers to return to their posts amid the COVID19: media reports

Four Cruise Ship Evacuees Test Positive in England

Four passengers tested positive for the coronavirus in England after being evacuated from the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan, Chief Medical Officer of Public Health England Chris Whitty said in a statement.

"The virus was passed on in the Diamond Princess cruise ship and the patients are being transferred from Arrow Park to specialist NHS infection centres," the statement added.

The new cases brought the total number of cases in the United Kingdom to 13.

Giorgio Armani Shows Collection Behind Closed Doors

Italian fashion designer Giorgio Armani radically altered his autumn/winter2020 presentation at Milan Fashion Week due to concerns over the spread of COVID-19, informing guests that the show would take place "behind closed doors", rather than in front of a live audience as usual.

Models walked down the catwalk in an empty theatre, while the show was live-streamed on the brand's website and social media channels.

Jordan Bars Citizens from China, Iran, South Korea

Jordan said it would bar citizens from China, Iran and South Korea from entering the kingdom in a bid to prevent the outbreak spreading. 

Indian Airports to screen passengers from 4 more countries

Indian aviation regulator DGCA has ordered screening of passengers from four more countries Nepal, Vietnam, Indonesia and Malaysia, as part of efforts to prevent spreading of coronavirus. Already, passengers travelling in flights from China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Thailand and Singapore are being screened at Indian airports in the wake of the Novel Coronavirus 2019 (CONVID 19).

2 Provinces Prisons & Rehab Centers Launch War-time Measures 

Sichuan and Northeast China's Heilongjiang provinces have requested their prisons and drug rehabilitation centers to implement temporary wartime controls to block the spread of the COVID-19 and eliminate loopholes in management, after new infections were reported at congregated facilities.

A total of 512 cases have been confirmed in five prisons in Zhejiang, Hubei and Shandong provinces on Friday.

There will no longer be rotating duty shifts in the prisons and the controls will be implemented for a month, the notice said. 

No Cut Off in Energy Supply for Not Paying Dues

The National Energy Administration said that during the outbreak, power, gas and heat supply enterprises should not cut off their supply for residents' not paying their due fees during the outbreak, temporarily. 

How did patients recover from COVID-19 without special treatment?

According to Chinese scientists, the flu-like COVID-19 is also a respiratory disease, which starts and ends in patients' lungs. In the early days of an infection, the virus rapidly invades human lung cells. Then the immune cells in our body will flood to the lungs to clear away the damage.

But the coronavirus is too crafty to be wiped out. Sometimes, the healthy tissues in lungs will suffer from knock-on effects, which leads to further damage. That's why some critically or severely ill patients have died from respiratory failure. 

Meanwhile, the immune system in our body will be equally impaired along the process, resulting in other complications and multiple organ failures among some patients.

According to Peng Zhiyong, director at Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, the treatment they gave to severe patients is just to help relieve symptoms.

"Specifically speaking, for patients who have shortness of breath, we offer them oxygen. For those who have kidney failure, we treat them with dialysis to keep their body in balance. When patients suffer from cardiac arrest, we recuse them with ECMO (a machine that can replace the function of the heart and lungs), Peng explained.

"We help them to maintain body functions, but most recovered patients rely on their own immunity to wipe out the virus," he added.

Which Thermometer to Use? 

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