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UN chief says global

recession due to

COVID-19 ‘a near

certainty’

IOC reviewing

Tokyo

Olympic Games

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Creating awareness

Saturday 21 March 2020

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Ministries ask people touse electronic servicesto curb COVID-19 spreadSANAULLAH ATAULLAH THE PENINSULA

A number of ministries have asked people to use electronic services through their apps and official websites in place of visiting in person to avail the services in a bid to curb the spread of COVID-19 by reducing the chances of infection.

The Ministry of Education and Higher Education has called people to avail the services of the ministry through official website www.edu.qa and e-gate for services ‘eduservices.edu.gov.qa’ and hotline 155.

“Under the preventive measures to protect citizens and expatriates from corona-virus, the ministry asked the people to avoid visiting in person to the ministry as much as they can,” the Ministry has tweeted.

The ministry also asked users to obtain equivalency cer-tificates online as the service is available and they can apply.

The Ministry of Municipality and Environment offers 93 services on its app.

“Under the framework of ongoing state efforts to reduce the chances of the infection of coronavirus, we advise you to use Aoun app, official website mme.gov.qa and telephone number of unified call center 184 to avail the services,” the Ministry has tweeted.

Aoun offers a total of 93 services, many of them are new from different sectors at the Ministry. The application fea-tures a follow-up option which allows tracing of applications

or licensing process or those related to ownership which were submitted previously such as the follow-ups of building permit, requests for land allo-cation among many more.

The application also pro-vides important information about the service centres such as the number of visitors in the waiting queue and working hours.

The Ministry of Adminis-trative Development, Labour and Social Affairs offers a total of 33 services including 21 services for individuals and 12 services for companies through its ‘Amerni’ app which is available on Apple Store and Android.

The users of the services of the ministry can make transac-tions through Amerni app and

website, the Ministry has tweeted.

The e-services of ‘Amerni’ application include housing application follow up, rent allowance follow up, house purchase-ownership request, title deed request, installment exception request, labour res-idency extension, establishment transactions suspension follow up, and establishment’s inclusive statistics.

Other services are labour complaint follow up (indi-vidual/corporate), job seeker’s registration certificate, nursery location, report violation of nurseries, house loan request, house request for people in need, senior staff loan variance disbursement, social security follow up, social security documents.

Qatar sends second shipment of urgent medical assistance to IranQNA — DOHA

The State of Qatar, represented by Qatar Fund for Development and Qatar Airways, sent the second shipment of urgent medical aid to the Islamic Republic of Iran to fight the spread of the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic.

Ambassador of the State of Qatar to Iran, H E Mohammed Bin Hamad Al Hajri said that this was not the first time the State of Qatar provide assistance to the Islamic Republic of Iran, with previous assistance provided during the floods and the earthquakes before that. He added that the assistance will continue until

the end of epidemic as Qatar will spare no effort in helping friendly nations.

The assistance of Qatar comes to combat the outbreak of the novel Coronavirus comes as a matter of joint responsibility in fighting the epidemic, which represents a common threat facing the entire world. The second shipment, which weighs seven tons, contains medical equipment and supplies, including masks, sterilizers, and medical disinfectants. The first shipment, which was transported on March 13, included six tons of medical equipment and sup-plies. Iran has reported one of the highest Corona-virus deaths and infections in the Middle-East.

Digital payments to get boost as residents opt for cashless transactionsSACHIN KUMAR THE PENINSULA

Digital payments in the country will get a boost as residents have increased use of online transactions to limit the spread of coronavirus. The spurt in digital transactions will further accelerate the pace of Qatar’s transformation into a cashless economy.

Because of high Internet

penetration and increasing awareness in Qatar, the use of digital payments— whether on mobile phones, cards, or online— has remained compar-atively high, but residents have stepped up the use of cards and online transactions to prevent the spread of Coronavirus.

“I was already using my debit card for most of my shopping. But, after the out-break of Coronavirus, I am

using my debit card for all my payments, even if the amount is small. Actually, I have not touched physical bank notes since the outbreak of Corona-virus,” Tamal Das, an engineer working for a construction company told The Peninsula.

Many banks and other financial institutions have urged their customers to opt for cashless payment. Bank officials say that advancement in

technology has made it very simple to make digital payments.

Banks in Qatar have rolled out contact less cards that have removed the need of pressing the Personal Identi-fication Number (PIN) at the retail outlets. Contact less cards allow customers to pay by simply tapping the card on the Point of Sale (PoS) machines or ATMs.

“It only takes a second or two to pay through contact less cards. There is no need to insert the card in the machine and, for low-value-purchases, no PIN entry is necessary. In Qatar, for contactless pur-chases below QR100, no PIN entry is required. Above this amount, users will have to enter the PIN,” a senior bank official told The Peninsula.

�P3

A COVID-19 awareness message is displayed on a mast on the D-Ring Road in Doha, yesterday. PIC: SALIM MATRAMKOT/THE PENINSULA

THE PENINSULA — DOHA

The Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) yesterday announced the registration of 10 new confirmed cases of COVID-2019 in Qatar, yesterday.

Most of the new cases are related to travellers who recently came to Qatar from the UK and the Swiss Confederation, and were quarantined. Among them five are Qataris, said the Ministry.

A total of 9,916 people have been tested for COVID-19 and 470 positive cases have been reported. Also, some 10 people have recovered from COVID-19 in Qatar.

The MoPH also continues to search and investigate those in contact with new cases. The Ministry also conducts nec-essary checks for all Qatari citizens who have recently trav-elled into the country and are subject to quarantine either in a hotel or at their home.

Meanwhile, Hamad Medical Corporation’s Ambulance Serv-ice’s decontamination teams continued to sterilise the housing complexes that are used to quarantine people.

THE PENINSULA — DOHA

The Government Commu-nication Office (GCO) has said that home quarantine will help protect entire c o m m u n i t y f r o m COVID-19.

“When practiced cor-rectly, home quarantine can ensure you and your community prevent the spread of coronavirus,” GCO said in an info-graphic tweet yesterday.

It says that even if you do not feel any symptoms, reside in a separate, ven-tilated room and avoid sharing public spaces at home. “Refrain from receiving visitors. Do not share household items. Do not leave the house. Put a plastic bag inside your trashcans, closing it tightly before disposing of it.”

It adds: Wash your hand often and with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze, throwing away used tissues in lined trash can. If you start to feel flu-like including fever, cough, or shortness of breath, call 16000.”

Driving classes, tests suspended from tomorrowSIDI MOHAMED THE PENINSULA

The Ministry of Interior represented by the General Directorate of Traffic has announced the suspension of the activ-ities of driving schools, whether driving classes or tests in schools, from tomorrow (March 22) until further notice.

The Traffic Department said that the theoretical training will continue online. Trainees can follow the lessons through “Driving Guide” app.The Department further said that this came in order to maintain public safety and in compliance with the precautionary and preventive measures taken by the country to limit the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19).

Lieutenant Abdul Mohsen Al Ruwaili said that the theoretical classes will continue and that the one who completes theoretical training will be able to go through the test immediately after the opening of the schools.

�P3

MoPH reports 10 new confirmed cases

GCO stresses importance of home quarantine

Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, H E Akbar Al Baker; Iran’s Ambassador to Qatar, H E Mohammed Ali Subhani; Director-General of Qatar Fund for Development, Khalifa bin Jassim Al Kuwari, and other officials during the shipment of medical aid to Iran, yesterday.

Designated authorities capture people who violated home quarantine conditionsQNA — DOHAIn implementation of the precautionary measures in force in the country and approved by health authorities represented in the Ministry of Public Health to fight the spread of the Corona virus (COVID-19), the designated authorities captured ten people who broke the home quarantine rules they committed to following, which they are legally accountable for.

The Ministry of Public Health said in a statement yesterday that the violators are currently being referred to prosecution, they are:1 - Ali Kamel Youssef Al Hashmi / Qatari citizen. 2 - Fahd Hassan Ayedh Al Qahtani / Qatari citizen.3 - Abdullah Taleb Ibrahim Al Ansari / Qatari citizen. 4 - Mohammed Ahmed Mohammed Assad Hashem / Qatari citizen. 5 - Ali Saleh Ali Al Yafei / Qatari citizen. 6 - Ibrahim Salah Ibrahim Al Mansouri / Qatari citizen. 7 - Joma’ Marzouq Daham Al Nasser / Qatari citizen. 8 - Mohammed Johar Mudaihi Al Abdullah / Qatari citizen. 9 - Said Abdulaziz Saoud Tuwaim / Qatari citizen. 10 - Hamad Ali Mohammed Assad Hashem/ Qatari citizen.

The state authorities called on citizens and residents under home quarantine to fully commit to the Ministry of Public Health’s condition, to ensure their safety and the safety of others.

The statement stressed that everyone who violates the con-dition is subject to the penalties stated in Article No. 253 of Criminal Law No. 11 of 2014, Law No. 17 of 1990 on protection from infec-tious diseases, and Law No. 17 of 2002 on protecting society.

OFFICIAL NEWS

DOHA: Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin

Hamad Al Thani and Deputy Amir

H H Sheikh Abdullah bin Hamad

Al Thani sent yesterday cables of

congratulations to the President of

the Republic of Tunisia, H E Kais

Saied, on the occasion of his coun-

try’s independence anniversary. The

Prime Minister and Minister of inte-

rior, H E Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa

bin Abdulaziz Al Thani, also sent

a cable of congratulations to the

Prime Minister of the Republic of

Tunisia, H E Elyes Fakhfakh. QNA

Amir sends congratulations to President of Tunisia

02 SATURDAY 21 MARCH 2020HOME

Hope Qatar starts virtual classes for differently-abled studentsTHE PENINSULA — DOHA

Hope Qatar Centre for Special Needs (Hope Qatar) recently commenced virtual continued learning support for its students and their families during the suspension of classroom learning to curb the spread of COVID-19.

This programme has been developed completely in-house by the team of Hope Qatar to ensure that the 47 differently abled students currently enrolled at the centre do not miss out on their academic classes or their therapeutic pro-grammes while they wait at homes unable to go to school, said a release.

“One of the main pre-req-uisites for an impactful pro-gramme, especially for the children who have special

needs, is to ensure that they are receiving continuous and con-sistent stimulation in a sys-tematic and ongoing manner” said Dr. Rajeev Thomas founder and Managing Director of Hope Qatar.

He said that if this stimu-lation is lost for even a few days or few weeks, visible deterio-ration could be noticed in the students who may forget what has been happening in the classes.

“Therefore it was essential for us to proactively come up with a plan of action to ensure that none of our students lose out when they are forced to remain at home and unable to attend classes for no fault of theirs” he added.

Academic Programs Coor-dinator at Hope Qatar, Mamta Yash, said: “We received the

direction from our Managing Director to quickly develop a program that will ensure that each student continues to receive daily classes while sitting at their homes.”

She said that each class teacher was assigned respon-sibility of their students and in coordination with the respective therapists, the tools, method-ology, and implementation plan

for each child was rapidly developed and rolled out in coordination and with the support of the parents of the children within couple of days.

“My husband and I were relieved when the notification came from Hope Qatar about their virtual support on a daily basis for all the students. This will help my daughter to stay in touch with her teachers and also to continue learning her lessons on a daily basis so that she is not losing out on any learning while sitting at home” said a parent.

Hope Qatar’s virtual support for its students was launched within two days of the restric-tions being imposed by the gov-ernment authorities preventing students from attending classes to minimize the risk of trans-mission or contact with the

COVID-19 virus. Worksheets, video lessons, audio instruc-tions, fixed schedules for each student, interaction with stu-dents and parents through phone and video conferencing, and a clear procedure for Virtual Curriculum Implemen-tation Program.

This virtual program is expected to continue till the restrictions are withdrawn and normal classes resume.

This ensures that no child lose out on the daily dose of stimulation without the need for either the student or the staff members leaving the safe com-forts of their own homes.

Such innovative approaches have brought the program at Hope Qatar Centre recognition as one of the most impactful Special Education Program in Qatar earlier also.

A student of Hope Qatar Centre for Special Needs learning lessons through virtual classes after classes were suspended due to COVID-19 threat.

Sidra Medicine offers advice for pregnant women about COVID-19THE PENINSULA — DOHA

The Women’s Services team at Sidra Medicine, a member of Qatar Foundation, advice pregnant women and addresses some common questions about COVID-19.

“There is currently limited information about the effects of COVID-19 on pregnant women. However, since pregnant women experience changes in their bodies, this may increase their risk of some infections and getting sicker, compared to the general pop-ulation. Premature births have been reported among infants born to mothers that caught the COVID-19 virus during preg-nancy, however, it is not clear that these outcomes were related to maternal infection. As with the current advice related to COVID-19, we rec-ommend pregnant women follow the guidelines from Qatar’s Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) and keep in regular contact with their healthcare provider,” said the Women’s Services team at Sidra Medicine.

To reduce the risk of catching COVID-19, the experts urge pregnant women to follow general instructions including maintaining personal hand hygiene and keep social distance.

They also advice to call Qatar’s Ministry of Public Health (MOPH) hotline 16000, if a person is pregnant and have exposed to COVID -19 virus.

The Women’s Services team at Sidra Medicine says that in case if a pregnant women and currently in self-isolation for suspected or con-firmed COVID-19 are adviced to call and delay the appointment antenatal clinic. But if the appointment is urgent and the necessary arrange-ments will be made to see the

patient. It is still unknown at this time if COVID-19 would cause problems during preg-nancy or affect the health of the baby after birth. Early/ Pre-mature births have been reported among infants born to mothers that caught the COVID-19 virus during preg-nancy however, it is not clear that these outcomes were related to pregnancy infection.

“If you have any of the above concerns during your self-isolation period, call Qatar’s MOPH Hotline 16000 and you may be advised to go to a MOPH designated site for pregnancy related care,” said the Women’s Services team at Sidra Medicine.

Pregnant women on self-isolation or those who have been exposed and have COVID-19 symptoms are advised not to visit Obstetrics triage or an Outpatient Clinic unless in need of urgent medical care.

If you are a Sidra Medicine patient and would like to speak to one of our obstetricians, please call 40031419 for further advice.

“There is currently no evi-dence to suggest that COVID-19 may affect how you may give birth. Your original birth plan should be followed as closely as possible and based on your wishes. However, if you have severe breathing difficulty indicating urgent delivery, then a cesarean birth may be rec-ommended,” said experts at Sidra Medicine. “There is no evidence that women with sus-pected or confirmed COVID-19 cannot have an epidural or a spinal block. However, the use of gas and air (Entonox =Nitrous Oxide) may increase the spread of the virus via aer-osolization and is not recom-mended. Therefore other options may be discussed,” they said.

QC: 138 companies benefit from mechanisms to transport goods to and from Industrial AreaQNA — DOHA

The Qatar Chamber’s (QC) emergency committee, recently formed to follow up economic developments related to Covid-19, said that 138 companies benefited from the Chamber’s efforts to solve the problem of transporting goods to and from the Industrial Area after the partial closure of the area.

The meeting outlined efforts exerted by the Chamber to ensure the uninterrupted flow of food and other essential supplies to people in the locked-down area of the Indus-trial Area. To help ease the flow of goods to the Industrial Area,

the Chamber has set up an elec-tronic system through which companies, which are willing to transport goods to and from the closed area, can access and fill in their data.

Since the launch of the elec-tronic system and over the past 24 hours, about 138 companies have been able to take advantage of it and transport their goods to and from the Industrial Area, contributing to the uninterrupted flow of goods and commodities to the locked-down area, the committee said in a statement.

The Chamber will collect these data in statements and send electronically to the Min-istry of Commerce and Industry

to approve. Then, the Chamber will send this approved statement to companies so that they can transport their goods to and from the Industrial Area according to the data recorded in that statement.

Furthermore, the meeting sought mechanisms of the com-mittee’s work as a focal point between the private sector sand the Supreme Committee for Crisis Management.

The QC emergency com-mittee aims to coordinate with the Ministry of Commerce and Industry to streamline busi-nesses during the current cir-cumstances and solve chal-lenges faced by the private sector.

The meeting reviewed the mechanism of implementing the private sector’s initiatives aiming to face the ongoing crisis of coronavirus.

The meeting also discussed the Chamber’s launch of an electronic system that allows businessmen and companies to launch their initiatives, whether physical, in-kind or service. Then, the Committee will address the Supreme Committee for Crisis Man-agement concerning these initiatives.

The private sector’s initia-tives will be in two categories. The first kind is about the private sector’s contribution to the government’s needs to face

the spread of the Coronavirus, while the second represents the private sector’s support for the private sector.

In the second category, large-scale companies and entrepreneurs will launch ini-tiatives to support small busi-nesses whose owners face financial challenges such as workers’ salaries, rental costs, and other challenges.

The emergency committee continues to hold meets on an ongoing basis and receives all businessmen’s proposals, and initiatives at emergencyqcci.org and for any inquiries, pro-posals, and complaints through the committee’s hotline (44559187).

MoCI fixes

maximum prices

for selling fish,

fruits & vegetables

THE PENINSULA — DOHA

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI) has fixed the maximum prices for selling fruits and vegetables. The prices will be valid till March 31, 2020 and are renewable.

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry has also fixed the maximum prices for selling local fish and seafood. It will also remain valid till March 31, 2020 and is renewable.

The price bulletin listing many imported and local fruits and vegetables is issued attached with the new decision.

The violators will be pun-ished as per the law, decisions and regulations in place in this regards, the Ministry has tweeted. It is mandatory for all outlets to abide by the prices mentioned in the bulletin. In case of violations, legal actions will be taken. The Ministry asked people to call on hotline 16001 if they come across any violations.

Smart Parking ProjectThe 'Smart Parking Project' is in progress at Al Dafna skyline area. PIC: BAHER AMIN/THE PENINSULA

‘Online learning leaves no one behind’ THE PENINSULA — DOHA

When Sharifa Ahen, a first-year Juris Doctor student, received news of the discontinuation of all in-class learning, her disap-pointment was quite evident. But now, more than one week into her distance learning expe-rience, that perception has changed.

“Online learning tools are not entirely new to me because online submissions are a core requirement of our law courses. But what was new to me is having to consistently use these tools remotely and coordinate with many users simultane-ously,” said Ahen.

Along with eight other members of her Juris Doctor class, Ahen regularly convenes to deliberate on legal cases. The Constitutional Law, Legal Writing II, International Law and Property Law courses they attend are geared towards

developing their instinct for approaching legal problems and gaining different perspectives. All courses have gone ahead as planned now that instruction has shifted online.

“I’ve learned to navigate the benefits and complexities of the online learning experience. I have had to shift my mindset from one that is more accus-tomed to skills such as being perceptive and able to read body language cues, to placing more emphasis on becoming an active listener. In the absence of physical interactions or visible responses, we’ve had to rely on and improve our antic-ipatory reactions and clarity in our communication.”

A huge source of frustration for Ahen was the cancellation of the Vis international com-mercial arbitration moot court competition, which was scheduled for April 2020 in Vienna, Austria. The

competition was the highlight of her academic year and Ms. Ahen, along with her team-mates, trained on a weekly basis in anticipation of this event since October 2019.

“On the international front, there’s a form of resilience made evident by global efforts to ensure continuity despite the circumstances. We knew that too when we were offered an opportunity to participate in the competition via online confer-encing. And despite it all, I was also able to partake in the Vis Middle East Pre-Moot in Bahrain just because it had shifted entirely online. Before then, the blockade would have made our visas near impossible to acquire.”

For Ahen, unusual circum-stances can present a learning curve for everyone involved. “There is a silver lining in eve-rything if you look for it. As lawyers, we will be expected to

handle situations like these in the future, where contracts may be abruptly terminated or public circulars need to be drafted.” “Although I don’t believe online learning can per-manently replace in-class learning, I do think it is a nec-essary alternative considering the current situation. It also allows for possible future flex-ibility once things go back to normal. As we are a graduate degree institution, many of our students have full-time jobs and family obligations. Online learning allows for remote attendance in exceptional sit-uations, which is especially rel-evant to our student body. What is happening today has clearly laid the foundation for contin-gency measures in the future. But I also feel especially blessed to have access to these technol-ogies, so affordability is not a privi lege we should undermine.”

FAJR SUNRISE 04.21 am 05.37 am

W A L R U WA I S : 21o↗ 27o W A L K H O R : 21o↗ 26o W D U K H A N : 20o↗ 29o W WA K R A H : 21o↗ 27o W M E S A I E E D 21o↗ 27o W A B U S A M R A 22o↗ 31o

PRAYER TIMINGS WEATHER TODAY

HIGH TIDE 03:24– 15:11 LOW TIDE 11:05 – 21:35

Partly cloudy to cloudy at times with a chance of scattered

rain maybe thundery at some places.

Minimum Maximum22oC 27oC

ZUHRMAGHRIB

11.41 am05.47 pm

ASR ISHA

03.08 pm07.17 pm

03SATURDAY 21 MARCH 2020 HOME

Qatar’s Ambassador in Seoul expresses aspiration to strengthen bilateral relationsQNA — SEOUL

The Ambassador of the State of Qatar to the Republic of Korea, H E Mohammed bin Ahmed Al Haiki, expressed the aspiration to strengthen bilateral relations between the two countries in various fields, noting that the ground for that exists, as Doha and Seoul signed more than 30 bilateral agreements and memoranda of understanding covering all areas of cooper-ation.

In an interview with South Korea’s Arirang TV, H E the Ambassador said that many Korean companies are involved in huge projects related to the 2022 World Cup, pointing out that some Korean companies are cur-rently implementing the roads leading to Al Thumama and Al Wakrah stadiums in the south of the country.

He added that the Republic of Korea is among the developed countries and it has rich culture and unique heritage, besides it is a model especially in the field of tech-nology and innovation, indi-cating that the State of Qatar is characterised by a strong economy that achieves con-tinuous growth, and is one of the oil and LNG producing countries, but it focuses more on the gas sector.

H E the Ambassador explained that the prepara-tions of the State of Qatar to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup are proceeding well, pointing to the recent report issued by

the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy, on the progress of work in the World Cup facilities where many projects were completed by 90 percent.

Regarding what the State of Qatar wants to achieve by hosting the 2022 World Cup, H E the Ambassador said that it is not easy for a small country to host a huge event like the World Cup, and the State of Qatar wants to prove to the world by accepting this challenge that even for small countries it can organize huge events and accomplish great achievements whenever there are will and determination.

The State of Qatar also wants to leave a mark and legacy of history distinctly and differently from others, as each country that hosted the World Cup has left its dis-tinctive cultural feature on the championship, which is what Qatar wants to achieve as well, he further explained.

H E Al Haiki stressed that the Qatari government does not want the country’s

economy to depend on a single source of income, so ambitious policies are now being pursued to diversify sources of income and create new sectors such as the pet-rochemicals and fertilizers sector. He added that the State of Qatar has a sovereign fund, that manages significant investments in Europe, Asia, and the United States.

H E the Ambassador of the State of Qatar to the Republic of Korea pointed out that diplomacy is an art used to achieve specific goals in a good way, and it is a good method to improve negoti-ation methods to avoid con-frontation and conflict.

He said that the world today is very complex and tainted with uncertainty, so it needs diplomacy as the main means to solve issues and bring stability to the world, as it can achieve con-crete results that contribute to global stability and security, not only for the present generation but also for future generations.

H E the Ambassador said that it is not easy for a small country to host a huge event like the World Cup, and the State of Qatar wants to prove to the world by accepting this challenge that even for small countries it can organise huge events and accomplish great achievements whenever there are will and determination.

2020 edition of Qumra goes online amid COVID-19RAYNALD C RIVERATHE PENINSULA

Doha Film Institute (DFI) has announced the 2020 edition of Qumra, DFI’s annual talent incubator for emerging global talent which marks its sixth year, will go online after it was cancelled due to the corona-virus outbreak.

“In light of COVID-19, our team came up with solutions that will ensure the 46 selected Qumra projects receive the mentorship and value added support. Announcing “Qumra 2020 - The Online Edition,” DFI has tweeted.

DFI said the alternative mentorship programme will take place online from March

20 to 25 as originally planned, during which all 46 projects will have their scheduled one-on-one sessions. In a

statement, Fatma Hassan Alre-maihi, Chief Executive Officer of DFI, said “Qumra is an extremely important event for our community and partici-pants, and the 46 selected projects remain a priority for DFI this year. To maintain the current momentum towards success for the projects, the Institute will proceed with an adapted online mentorship and support format to gen-erate opportunities for the filmmakers through this period of new challenges. This abridged version of the Qumra catalogue highlights the 46 projects that will benefit from this innovative solution.”

All industry guests will receive the project catalogue,

delegates contact list, as well as the match-made sugges-tions and will be invited to connect online. Furthermore, festival programmers, sales agents and distributors will have exclusive access until the end of this month to the 20-min excerpts of the work-in-progress projects in post-production, preceded by a video introduction by the filmmakers.

Yesterday, DFI announced via Twitter the four feature documentary projects cur-rently in the development phase which will receive online consultations this week. These include “The Flower Men” (Yemen, Qatar) by Yousra Ishaq, “Kashkash”

(Lebanon, Germany, Qatar) by Lea Najjar, “Machtat” (Tunisia, France, Leabanon, Qatar) by Sonia Ben Slama, and “Searching for Kikhia” (Libya, Lebanon, Qatar) by Jihan Kikhia.

“The Institute is extremely grateful to our Qumra Masters, filmmakers and industry par-ticipants for their ongoing passion and contribution to our commitment to reshape the global storytelling land-scape and empower emerging voices to create cinema, to exercise creative expression, and to transform inspired stories into acclaimed master-pieces. The evolution of sto-rytelling has expanded the scope and expression of ideas

and influence, and we hope this “Online Qumra” will be a successful extension of our ongoing passion and com-mitment to supporting emerging voices in global film-making,” said Alremaihi.

Qumra 2020 programme includes 46 projects from 20 countries, of which 20 are by Qatar-based talents, including 12 by Qatari nationals. Seven of the projects were in devel-opment, with others in the Qumra Series and Shorts pro-grammes. Of the 46 projects, 33 are recipients of DFI’s Grants programme, three are supported through the Qatari Film Fund and one through the Institute’s co-financing programme.

DFI said the alternative mentorship programme will take place online from March 20 to 25 as originally planned, during which all 46 projects will have their scheduled one-on-one sessions.

SriLankan

Airlines closes Al

Khor, Industrial

Area branches

THE PENINSULA — DOHA

The Doha office of SriLankan Airlines has announced that its branches in Al Khor and Industrial Area are tempo-rarily closed, while the office in Doha has reduced working hours, in light of the evolving COVID-19.

“We have strengthened our back office teams. We strongly discourage serving over the office in Doha during the outbreak,” said SriLankan Airlines on social media.

Passengers who have booked tickets with SriLankan Airlines to travel between March 22 and March 29 are requested to contact their travel agents or online booking site. Meantime, passengers also can contact SriLankan Airlines staff on 44441217, 44360689, 44446345 and 44322628. Email:doh.res@sri-lankan.com or contact the Sri-Lankan Airlines 24 hour global call centre on +94117771979.

HBKU experts provide health tips while working from homeTHE PENINSULA — DOHA

In the wake of the current COVID-19 outbreak across the globe, experts from Hamad Bin Khalifa Univer-sity’s College of Health and Life Sciences provide tips on how to improve mental well-being and get sufficient exercise while working from home or self-isolating. Here, the experts also set about dispelling some of the most common myths surrounding the virus, how to safe-guard against.

“Staying active during social dis-tancing is easy! There are many forms of bodyweight exercises that can be done indoors and without expensive gym equipment. For example, exercises like bodyweight squats, lunges, push-ups, and many core stability exercises (planks, crunches, etc.) can all be done within your own home. Yoga, espe-cially, is a great exercise that is useful for both physical and mental health. There are many yoga rou-tines and indoor exercise workout ideas that can be found on YouTube or elsewhere on the internet. Just use search words like “indoor workout” or “indoor bodyweight exercises” or “home yoga routine,” said Dr. Nathan Townsend at the College of Health and Life Sciences.

With the globalisation of the media, expert opinion tends to be diluted and can go unnoticed. This is the case in the situation asso-ciated with COVID-19. The top myths that people at HBKU, in

Qatar, and worldwide are particu-larly keen to accept as facts.

Dr. Georges Nemer at College of Health and Life Sciences said that such misconceptions include, drink water or hot fluids often to flush COVID-19 into your stomach where acid will destroy the virus, holding your breath without coughing even if you have symptoms means no COVID-19 infection, COVID 19 will go away by summertime and with the rise of temperatures, antibiotics or the flu vaccine will destroy COVID-19, spraying alcohol or chlorine all over your body kills COVID-19 and eating garlic or spe-cific nutrients help prevent infection with COVID-19.

“Best practice, to be on the safe side, is to follow the guidance of the World Health Organization (WHO) and Center for Disease Control (CDC), which advise people of all ages to take steps to protect

themselves and others from the virus by following good hand and respiratory hygiene,” said Dr Nemer.

While, according to Dr. Omar Albagha at College of Health and Life Sciences, current evidence indicates that the COVID-19 virus is spread mainly from person to person through close contact with an infected person or through droplets produced from coughing and sneezing.

“The most effective measure to protect ourselves is to avoid exposure to the virus. This can be achieved by avoiding crowded places and unnecessary travel, keeping a safe distance (at least six feet) when talking to other people, not touching your face, and frequent cleaning of hands using soap and water for at least 20 seconds or using hand sanitizer. Additionally, people should cover their nose and

mouth with a tissue when coughing or sneezing and make sure the tissue is immediately discarded,” he said. The latest news has revealed that a research institute in Seattle in the US is conducting a phase 1 clinical trial to assess the safety of a potential RNA-based vaccine against COVID-19.

“This entails examining whether the tested dose would trigger the immune response, while at the same time cause no adverse effects. In fact, there is a world-wide effort to find a vaccine but even so, there is no assurance of an immediate one. Typically, it takes 12 to 18 months to fully validate the utility of a vaccine,” said Dr. Dindial Ramotar at College of Health and Life Sciences.

“So far, there is no cure for COVID-19, except for the preventive measures that are currently being taken. However, scientists are taking an alternative approach by trying various drugs to eradicate the

virus. These drugs include Remde-sivir, Kaletra (a mixture of two anti-HIV drugs), as well as the readily available and inexpensive antima-larial drug Chloroquine. The results from using these drugs are expected anytime soon. There are no immune-boosting medicines or therapies that can reduce the risk of transmission,” he added.

At times like this, it is vital to pause, breathe, and not panic. Best practice, to be on the safe side, is to follow the WHO guidance, which advise people of all ages to take steps to protect themselves from the virus by practicing good hand hygiene and good respiratory hygiene.

“It is important that you do not dismiss children’s fears but speak to them at an age-appropriate level after assessing their knowledge of the virus and processing your own anxiety,” said Dr. Edward Stuenkel, College of Health and Life Sciences.

Dr. Edward Stuenkel (left) and Dr. Georges Nemer.

Driving classes and tests suspended from tomorrow

FROM PAGE 1

Speaking to The Peninsula, he said that the decision was taken on time after providing necessary a l ternat ive for trainees and schools.

For his part, Hassan Nassar, (pic-tured), Manager of Dal lah Driving Academy said that decision of the General Directorate of Traffic was meant to protect the safety of the community.

“The Directorate directed the temporary closure of driving schools to limit the spread of COVID-19”.

Hassan Nassar, said that to limit the spread of the virus, Dallah Driving Academy has already taken some precau-tionary measures based on the directives of the General Direc-torate of Traffic, including measuring temperature of trainees before their entrance to the academy and measuring the temperature of the trainers

twice a day. Nassar also said that among the measures taken by the academy are providing sanitisers at the main entrances and toilets and sterilising cars before training starts.

Many people, on social media accounts of the Ministry of Interior, hailed the decision saying that the decision is abso-lutely good and it will help protect trainees and trainers from the virus that spreads in crowded places like driving schools.

Residents in Qatar opt for cashless transactionsFROM PAGE 1

The required amount for PIN entry varies from country to country. The ease of using cards is prompting residents to go for cashless transactions.

“Going cashless is not only safe but it also has health ben-efits. With physical currency, the chance of spreading of germs is more. We all know that reducing the amount of use of paper currency lowers the transmission of germs. In current situation, we can play

our part in limiting the spread of Coronavirus by increasing the use of different modes of digital payments,” Subhash Ghosh, a professional working for an IT company told The Peninsula.

The Communications Reg-ulatory Authority (CRA) yes-terday urged residents to use bank cards. “Make sure to use your bank card to complete all recharge and bill payments by using telecom service pro-viders’ Self-Service Machines, mobile apps, or website,” said

CRA in a tweet yesterday.Ooredoo has also issued

similar advisory for its cus-tomers. “Dear Customers, for your health and safety, we highly advise that you use your credit/debit cards to settle bills via our Self Service Machines, instead of paying by cash. You can also use our digital channels, such as the Ooredoo App and the Ooredoo website, or call 111 for other transactions,” said Ooredoo in messages sent to its customers.

“Staying active during social distancing is easy! There are many forms of bodyweight exercises that can be done indoors and without expensive gym equipment. For example, exercises like bodyweight squats, lunges, push-ups, and many core stability exercises (planks, crunches, etc.) can all be done within your own home. Yoga, especially, is a great exercise that is useful for both physical and mental health," said Dr. Nathan Townsend at the College of Health and Life Sciences.

04 SATURDAY 21 MARCH 2020MIDDLE EAST / AFRICA

11 new coronavirus cases in Kuwait; Jordan, Tunisia announce lockdownAGENCIES — KUWAIT/AMMAN

Eleven new cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) were discovered in Kuwait within the last 24 hours, bringing the total of infections to 159, said the Kuwaiti Health Ministry yesterday.

The Ministry’s Spokesman Dr. Abdullah Al Sanad revealed that out of the 159 in total, 22 cases recovered and 137 are still receiving treatment.

He indicated that there are five cases still in the ICU. Some 574 individuals had finished the quarantine period, he affirmed.

Earlier yesterday Kuwait’s Minister of Health Sheikh Dr. Basel Al Sabah announced that four patients recovered from the coronavirus, bringing the total number to 22.

Authorities in Palestine, Lebanon and Tunisia also reported yesterday new cases of the coronavirus. A new case has been diagnosed in a Pales-tinian citizen from Salfit province (North) who came from Pakistan, bringing the number of cases to 48,” Pales-tine’s Health Minister Mai Al Kaila said.

Kuwait on Thursday

extended the suspension of classes at all public and private schools and higher education institutions until Aug. 4 due to the novel coronavirus outbreak.

Government spokesman Tariq Al Mazram told a press conference that the decision was taken in light of the latest developments. Earlier this month, the government said the suspension would last until March 25.

Lebanon’s Health Ministry reported 14 new cases, con-firming the total cases to 163.

In Tunisia, the total number of cases rose to 54 as 15 new cases were recorded.

The global death toll from novel coronavirus has soared past 10,000 yesterday, according to the figures com-piled by US-based Johns Hopkins University.

Jordan will impose a coun-trywide lockdown from today to combat the coronavirus, barring people from moving except for emergencies, the gov-ernment said.

The measures will apply from 0700 local time (0500 GMT) on Saturday until further notice, said Amjad Al Adailah, government spokesman.

King Abdullah has enacted an emergency decree giving the government sweeping powers to enforce an army-imposed curfew and other measures that infringe on civil and political liberties.

Prime Minister Omar Razzaz had suggested the government would be forced to announce a curfew after many people failed to heed a call by the authorities not to move about except in cases of emergencies.

Jordan’s army sealed off the capital from the rest of the

Iran’s leaders strike upbeat tone as toll climbs to 1,433AP — TEHRAN

Iran’s leaders vowed to overcome the new coronavirus outbreak in upbeat messages marking Nowruz yesterday, even as the Health Ministry announced 149 more fatalities, bringing the country’s death toll to 1,433.

Iran is battling the worst outbreak in the Middle East, with nearly 20,000 confirmed cases, and has been widely crit-icized for its slow response.

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has final say on all state matters, called the new year “the year of leaps in production” in Iran’s economy, which has been under heavy US sanctions since President Donald Trump withdrew from the 2015 nuclear accord.

President Hassan Rouhani also marked Nowruz by prom-ising a better economy. “We will put the coronavirus behind us soon with unity, with hard work and with cooperation,” he said.

Most people who come down with the COVID-19 illness caused by the virus experience

only minor symptoms and recover within weeks. But the virus is highly contagious and can be spread by people showing no symptoms. It can cause severe illness, including pneumonia, particularly in sick or elderly patients.

More than 240,000 people have been infected worldwide. More than 10,000 have died, while more than 85,000 have recovered. Rouhani has defended his government’s response to the coronavirus outbreak in the face of wide-spread criticism that officials acted too slowly and may have even covered up initial cases before infections rapidly spread across the country. Rouhani assured Iranians that his administration will prioritize health in the coming year and said it had stockpiled basic supplies.

Nowruz is a major holiday in Iran, when shoppers typically pack into local markets and take extended vacations. This year most shops are closed, and those merchants who are still working can be seen warily

accepting cash or debit cards from customers wearing face masks.

Khamenei issued a religious edict this week prohibiting all unnecessary travel and author-ities have restricted travel between cities. After weeks of heavy criticism, authorities finally closed two major reli-gious shrines in recent days.

Other countries in the region have imposed far stricter measures to contain the virus, including cancelling flights, sealing borders and forcing all non-essential businesses to close. In neighbouring Iraq, authorities struggled to keep pilgrims from marking the annual Shia commemoration of the death of Imam Mousa Al

Kazim despite a week-long curfew in the capital. Thou-sands of Iraqis typically make the journey on foot to the shrine of the imam in the Khazimiyah area of Baghdad.

Security forces have been stopping pilgrims in recent days, but more keep arriving. Late on Thursday, the doors of the shrine were closed and the electricity was switched off. Officials called on the faithful to perform the pilgrimage “remotely” to ensure their safety and the safety of others.

Iraq has been grappling with anti-government protests for months. The coronavirus outbreak, which has infected around 200 people and killed more than a dozen, and the fallout from cratered oil prices, threaten to plunge the country into a major crisis. Saudi Arabia announced early yesterday it would shut down domestic air travel, buses, taxis and trains for the next two weeks, beginning this morning. The kingdom has reported 274 con-firmed cases, eight of whom recovered.

Iran FM urges Japan to double efforts for lifting US sanctionsQNA — TEHRAN

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif held yesterday a phone conver-sation with his Japanese coun-terpart Toshimitsu Motegi.

During the call, Zarif urged Japan to redouble its efforts to remove US sanctions against Iran. They also discussed regional and international developments.

The Iranian Foreign Min-ister briefed his Japanese counterpart on the details of what the Iranian authorities are doing to combat the Coro-navirus (Covid-19), thanking the Japanese government and people for the assistance they provided to Iran to counter the virus. He pointed out that the US sanctions are the main barrier for supplying pharma-ceutical and medical equipment needs.

A view of an empty mosque after Friday prayers were suspended to prevent the spread of COVID-19, in Sidon, Lebanon.

country on Thursday to put its 10 million people on lockdown. The country has 69 confirmed coronavirus cases but author-ities are afraid it could spread fast. Jordan has closed land and sea border crossings with Syria, Iraq, Egypt and Israel, and sus-pended all incoming and out-going flights since Tuesday.

Tunisian President Kais Saied yesterday declared a nationwide, round-the-clock self-isolation of inhabitants to combat the spread of the novel

coronavirus in the country, after an increase in confirmed cases.

During the day, everyone should stay home and only go out in cases of “extreme necessity”, Saied said in a tele-vised address.

Tunisia has so far reported 54 confirmed cases of the COVID-19 disease and one death.

The North African country has already closed its borders and imposed a curfew from

6:00 pm to 6am (1700-0500 GMT) in an effort to stave off the epidemic sweeping the globe.

Movement between regions has also been banned except for cases with a “legitimate reason”, the president said.

Supermarkets will be closed but shops and convenience stores will be supplied, he added.

Saied also announced the closure of industrial areas with large numbers of employees.

Africa’s busiest airport says foreigners cannot disembarkAP — JOHANNESBURG

Anxiety rose in Africa’s richest nation yesterday as South Africa said coronavirus cases jumped to 202, the most in the sub-Saharan region, while the conti-nent’s busiest airport said foreigners cannot disembark. State-owned South African Airways suspended all interna-tional flights until June.

And in a serious risk of local transmission, South Africa said five of its new cases had attended a church gathering of more than 200 people in central Free State province. All had arrived from abroad. Author-ities were rushing to find other attendees.

Another new South Africa case was a health worker who had been in a number of private hospitals.

Johannesburg’s O.R. Tambo International Airport said air-craft with foreigners “will be contained at an isolated bay with all officials ensuring the utmost care is taken,” following up on travel restrictions announced days ago when South Africa declared a national disaster. “We are working with the airline to ensure that foreign nationals return to the country of origin.”

Foreigners across the con-tinent of more than 1.3 billion people face the growing chance of being stranded as countries

close borders and block flights.The financially troubled

South African Airways said the immediate suspension of all international flights through May 31 was because of corona-virus-related travel restrictions and the “substantial decline in demand” for air travel.

“It is all our responsibility, not just government, to curb further transmission of the virus,” CEO Zuks Ramasia said in a statement. “In addition, the increasing risks to our crew of contracting the virus, including the possibility of being trapped in foreign destinations as a con-sequence of increasing travel bans, cannot be ignored.”

SAA flies to New York,

London, Frankfurt, Munich and Washington - all in what South Africa now considers high-risk countries.

Also Friday, another African nation announced its first case, Cape Verde. Thirty-seven coun-tries on the continent now have cases, with a total now well above 800.

So far most of the cases in Africa have been linked to overseas travel. But overnight Niger in announcing its first case highlighted possible regional spread inside the con-tinent. Its citizen had traveled via the West African capitals of Togo, Ghana, Ivory Coast and Burkina Faso.

Sierra Leone President

Julius Maada Bio directed the military to the international airport and land borders to increase security and “and support compliance with all public health directives” while calling on people not to panic.

“If you cannot do so volun-tarily then we will keep you in isolation by force,” Kenya’s health chief, Mutahi Kagwe, has warned.

Deaths across Africa from the virus reached 20 as Gabon reported its first. No one has died in South Africa, where the health minister said no patient was in intensive care.

All but 23 of South Africa’s cases are in people under age 60.

Attack on army camp in Mali leaves 29 dead

ANATOLIA — KIGALI

At least 29 people including two soldiers were killed on Thursday in a suspected terrorist attack on an army camp in northeastern Mali, the military said.

“Mali military camp at Tarkint village in Gao city area was the target of a ter-rorist attack on Thursday morning.

The death toll from the attack was 29 people and five injured,” the military said on its Twitter page.

It added that two Malian soldiers were among the dead.

In February, three Malian soldiers were killed and five injured in a terrorist attack on an army camp in Bambara Maoude, about 100km south of Timbuktu city.

In March, militants with rocket launchers attacked a checkpoint in central Mali, killing six soldiers and injuring 10.

Last November, some 50 Malian soldiers were killed in a terrorist attack on a military post in northeast Mali.

Mali’s President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita said in Feb-ruary that his government was seeking talks with extremist groups in an effort to end an insurgency that has engulfed the country.

Passengers wait to board a disinfected public transport bus as they leave for the villages amid concerns about the spread of COVID-19, in downtown Nairobi, Kenya, yesterday.

25 Haftar militia

members killed

in Tripoli clashes

ANATOLIA — TRIPOLIForces of Libya’s UN-recog-nized Government of National Accord (GNA) neutralsed 25 militia members loyal to renegade General Khalifa Haftar early yesterday during clashes in the capital.

Tripoli-based Febrayer TV reported that troops taking part in the GNA’s Volcano of Rage Operation and the militias clashed in the Ain Zara region south of Tripoli.

The slain militia members were said to be mercenaries brought over from Sudan and Chad. Photos of their corpses were posted on social media.

A Kuwaiti health official revealed that out of the 159 in total coronavirus cases, 22 recovered and 137 are still receiving treatment. There are five cases still in the ICU. Some 574 individuals had finished the quarantine period.

Risky journey

AFP — TEHRAN

Twenty-three inmates escaped from an Iranian prison while guards were making preparations for a Persian New Year amnesty, state news agency IRNA reported yesterday.

It said the detainees escaped overnight from a facility in the western city of Khorramabad, the capital of Lorestan province, just hours before the start of Nowruz, Iran’s New Year celebra-tions. IRNA denied guards had shot a prisoner during the escape, saying such reports came from “unreliable sources”, after oppo-sition groups tweeted that several inmates were shot.

The escapees had been serving a maximum of one-year sen-tences, the agency said, denying dangerous individuals went free.

10,000 prisoners” would be released in the New Year amnesty.

23 prisoners escape fromprison on eve of Nowruz

05SATURDAY 21 MARCH 2020 ASIA

Privacy fears as India hand stamps suspected casesREUTERS — MUMBAI/CHENNAI

People suspected of having the coronavirus in India have received handstamps and are being tracked using their mobile phones and personal data to help enforce quarantines, raising concerns about privacy and mass surveillance.

The outbreak, termed COVID-19, has infected more than 234,000 people worldwide and killed nearly 10,000, according to a Reuters tally.

In India more than 200 people have been infected and four have died, with officials reporting multiple cases of people f leeing from quarantine.

In response, the western state of Maharashtra and southern Karnataka state this week began using indelible ink to stamp people arriving at airports.

The hand stamps include the date that a person must remain under home quarantine, and states that those marked are “proud to protect” their fellow citizens.

“When I first heard of the stamping in Mumbai, I thought it was fake news,” said Supreme Court lawyer N S Nappinai, an expert in data privacy

legislation. “I understand the concern but where does one draw the line? Should funda-mental rights be suspended in an emergency like this?” The coronavirus outbreak has enabled authorities from China to Russia to increase surveil-lance, with the risk that these measures will persist even after

the situation eases. “We found people who were stamped and were travelling. They had signed a self-declaration that they will not travel because they could be carriers of corona-virus,” said Archana Valzade, under secretary in Maharash-tra’s health department.

“It is their duty as well to

stop the infection. Stamping is essential and very useful to reduce the spread,” she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation, adding no one has raised objec-tions so far. In southern Kerala state, authorities have used tel-ephone call records, CCTV footage, and mobile phone GPS systems to track down primary

and secondary contacts of coro-navirus patients. Officials also published detailed time and date maps of the movement of people who tested positive.

“People have been jumping quarantine and it has been a challenge to track them,” said Amar Fettle, who is heading the coronavirus control team in Kerala.

Kerala yesterday recorded 12 more positive cases of coro-navirus, taking the state's total to 37, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said.

Of the fresh cases, six were recorded at Kasargode, five in Kochi and one at Palakkad.

The total people now under observation in the state reached 44,390 including 225 at various hospitals. Vijayan said things have turned bad in Kasargode as a person who arrived from Dubai took part in numerous functions before he was found Covid-19 positive on Thursday.

“But we have formed hun-dreds of squads, including policemen to track and ensure people follow the norms.” As more COVID-19 cases are reported in India, Prime Min-ister Narendra Modi on Thursday urged citizens to stay home and follow government instructions.

Members from Disaster Response Force of Telangana State spraying disinfectant on a pedestrian footpath amid concerns over the spread of the COVID-19, in Hyderabad yesterday.

Jakarta declares stateof emergency as viruscases rise in IndonesiaREUTERS — JAKARTA

Indonesia likely faces a large surge in coronavirus cases after a slow government response masked the scale of the epidemic in the world’s fourth most populous country, health experts say, as the capital, Jakarta, declared a state of emergency yesterday.

Less than three weeks after recording its first case, Indo-nesia had 369 confirmed cases and 32 deaths. Jakarta, a city of 10 million people, had 215 con-firmed infections and 18 deaths.

While coronavirus cases and deaths are rising in much of Southeast Asia, Indonesia’s population of 260 million people, sprawling landmass and creaking healthcare system make it especially vulnerable.

“Indonesia is likely to have many more cases than currently reported,” said Professor Ian Henderson, Director of the Institute for Molecular

Bioscience at the University of Queensland.

“Without large-scale testing, contact tracing and quarantine measures, the opportunity for spread of this virus is great.” The World Health Organisation has said mass testing is the most effective way of tackling the coronavirus.

Indonesia had tested only 1,898 people as of yesterday, or around seven tests per one

million people, compared with more than 5,000 per million in South Korea and more than 2,000 per million in Italy, two of the worst affected countries.

Cambodia, which has one sixteenth as many people and less than 2% of its GDP, has carried out nearly as many tests as Indonesia.

President Joko Widodo’s government has increased the number of laboratories authorised to conduct testing from only one in Jakarta to more than a dozen, including on Java island, and in the east of Papua.

Widodo said he would use “all state power” to tackle the outbreak and that rapid testing was being launched in areas where there were cases.

More testing is likely to expose far more cases and Indonesia should “prepare for the worst”, the head of the country’s Red Cross told

Reuters. Indonesia has reported only 1.4 cases per million people, compared to 4 per million in Thailand, 28 per million in Malaysia, 219 per million in Iran and 679 per million in Italy, a Reuters analysis of publicly released figures shows.

The ratio of the number of dead to the number of recorded cases in Indonesia at 8.7% is among the highest in the world - even higher than 8.3% in Italy.

Medics say it is a likely indicator that cases have gone unde-tected. Malaysia and the neigh-bouring Philippines have intro-duced strict curbs on movement to try to contain the virus, but Widodo has resisted such a move.

Indonesia, home to the world’s biggest Muslim popu-lation, saw mass Islamic Friday prayers in some areas, even as countries around the world cancel large gatherings. Jakarta

has suspended religious activ-ities, including Friday prayers and Christian services, for two weeks.

Jakarta Governor Anies Bas-wedan, declaring the state of emergency, said that beverage outlets, spas and cinemas would be shut from Monday and public transport limited. “Our response capability has a limit because the numbers of hospitals and staff are not in line with the growth of cases,” he said.

Indonesian Muslims in protective masks are checked with thermal scanner before Friday prayers at a mosque at Surabaya, East Java Province, in Indonesia.

Less than three weeks after recording its first case, Indonesia had 369 confirmed cases and 32 deaths. Jakarta, a city of 10 million people, had 215 confirmed infections and 18 deaths.

Sri Lanka

imposes curfew

REUTERS — COLOMBO

Sri Lanka imposed a nationwide weekend curfew yesterday as South Asian countries escalated efforts to check the spread of corona-virus across the densely popu-lated region of 1.9 billion people.

A police curfew took effect nationwide in Sri Lanka at 6pm yesterday and will run until 6am on Monday, as authorities on the island acted to slow transmission of the virus, which has infected 70 people there.

New cases take

Bangladesh

tally to 20

ANATOLIA — DHAKA

Three new coronavirus cases were confirmed in Bangladesh yesterday, raising the country’s total to 20, according to government data.

The figures were published in the latest health bulletin of the government-run Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control, and Research.

The country has reported one death due to COVID-19, a 70-year-old man who passed away on Wednesday. On Thursday, the government declared a lockdown in Shibchar, an area about 80km south of the capital Dhaka.

“We are ready to shut down more areas if needed to prevent the spread of coronavirus,” said Health and Family Welfare Minister Zahid Maleque, adding that the army would be running two isolation centers in Dhaka.

He said leaves of all doctors and other health workers had also been canceled until further notice. As Bangladesh looks to expand its coronavirus testing capacity, one of the country’s oldest health facilities claims it will soon start local production of an inexpensive and effective testing kit.

India hangs four over 2012 'Nirbhaya' caseANATOLIA — NEW DELHI

India yesterday hanged four people convicted for moles-tation and murder of a 23-year-old medical student in 2012, according to the Delhi Police.

“Nirbhaya gang rape & murder convicts hanged at Central Prison Tihar yesterday. Adequate arrangements were put in place to facilitate exe-cution of the verdict of Hon’ble Supreme Court,” tweeted the Police Commissioner’s office of West Delhi.

Hours before the hanging, the Supreme Court, in a pre-dawn hearing, rejected the plea filed by one of the convicts seeking a review of the death penalty.

The four men, Akshay Kumar Singh (31), Pawan Gupta (25), Vinay Sharma (26) and Mukesh Singh (32), were hanged at 5.30am local time at the Tihar jail, Asia’s largest prison. In the last few months, the attackers had filed a series of petitions to delay the execution.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted: “Justice has pre-vailed. It is of utmost impor-tance to ensure the dignity and safety of women. Our ‘Nari Shakti’ [power of women] has excelled in every field. Together, we have to build a Nation where the focus is on women empowerment, where

there is an emphasis on equality and opportunity.” The assault on the young woman — given a pseudonym “Nirbhaya” meaning “fearless” as under Indian laws the molestation victims cannot be named — had led to outcries all around the world and India.

Various women groups and campaigners had demanded strict laws against the women’s assaulters.

The case has been a turning point in terms of stirring national conscience and has led to changes in a host of laws related to women safety, including Code of Criminal Pro-cedure, and the announcement of “Nirbhaya Fund” of $1.33bn for empowerment, safety, and security of women and girls in the 2013 budget.

On Thursday, a standing committee on the Human Resource Development Min-istry shared its report in the Upper House of the Parliament, on issues related to women’s safety. On the evening of December 16, 2012, at around 8pm local time, a group of men in a bus first attacked Nirb-haya’s friend, following an argument, beat him up with an iron rod, after which he fell unconscious. Then they vio-lated her, and the victim later died at a hospital in Singapore, where she had been transferred by the Indian government for treatment.

BJP MLAs to select leader today in Madhya Pradesh IANS — BHOPAL

The BJP will hold a meeting of its party MLAs from Madhya Pradesh today in the state capital to select a leader and then approach the Governor to stake its claim to form government, party leaders said yesterday.

Congress Chief Minister Kamal Nath handed over his resignation to Governor Lalji Tandon today at 1.30pm half-an-hour before the scheduled special session for the floor test. Tandon accepted his resig-nation. The resignation obviated the floor test and therefore the special session that was to be

held on the order of the Supreme Court. Speaker Narmada Prasad Prajapati then adjourned the House sine die.

A senior BJP leader related to the development said, “The meeting of party legislators to select a leader will be held in Bhopal today.”

He said the leader thus selected would then go to meet Governor to stake his claim to form the government. Fol-lowing the crucial development in the state, the BJP sent its national vice-president Vinay Sahasrabuddhe to look after the developments.

The BJP leader said the Gov-ernor will give time to the party

leader to prove majority in the state assembly and form gov-ernment in the state.

The BJP leader further said that Kamal Nath surrendered before the BJP without giving a fight. He said, “We expected Kamal Nath will face the floor test. But he surrendered and resigned without coming to the Assembly.”

When asked about Kamal Nath’s secretary claim of his being in touch with half-a-dozen party MLAs ready to resign in the state, he said, “If our party MLAs were in touch with the Congress, then the Chief Minister would have faced the floor test and they should

have given us a tough fight in the floor test. But all their claims proved false,” he said.

The day began with the news of BJP MLA Sharad Kol of Beohari resigning his mem-bership of the House. With his resignation being accepted, the strength of the House came down further. Expectations in the Congress camp rose that the party would make more dents into the opposition.

The fall in number of legis-lators in the House was to the advantage of the BJP. The Con-gress which came to power after 15 years of struggle squan-dered the state in just 15 months.

Fiji reports first

case of novel

coronavirus

ANATOLIA — ANKARA

Fiji authorities confirmed the country’s first case of the novel coronavirus, local media reported. The southern Pacific country’s Head of Health Protection Dr. Alisha Sahukhan said a flight attendant of flag carrier Fiji Airways tested positive for COVID-19, in an imported case of the disease rather than a local transmission. The patient, who had recently been to the US and New Zealand, showed symptoms on Tuesday evening after which he was admitted into a hospital.

Vietnam extends quarantine to all foreign arrivals from today

REUTERS - HANOI

Vietnam will extend a quar-antine regime for incoming travellers, placing all interna-tional arrivals in adapted military bases from today to curb the spread of the corona-virus, its health ministry said yesterday.

Weeks after announcing the recovery of all 16 of its coronavirus sufferers, the Southeast Asian nation has confirmed it now has 87 infec-tions, but no deaths, after authorities announced a surge in infections from overseas.

“All incoming travellers will be immediately transported to

repurposed military camps for 14 days’ quarantine,” Vietnam’s health ministry said in a statement, without saying how long the policy would remain in place.

Vietnam had already imposed a quarantine requirement for arrivals from the United States, Europe and member states of the Associ-ation of Southeast Asian Nations (Aseasn). The gov-ernment on Wednesday said it was expanding quarantine facilities to house around 60,000 people as thousands of Vietnamese are set to flock home from abroad to flee the widening pandemic.

06 SATURDAY 21 MARCH 2020HOME

07SATURDAY 21 MARCH 2020 ASIA

Mask diplomacy: China showers Europe with aidAFP — BEIJING

With millions of face masks, low interest loans and teams of medical experts, China is trying to paint itself as a Good Samaritan while deflecting crit-icism over its initial missteps in handling the coronavirus.

Beijing has showered strug-gling European nations with aid as part of a diplomatic charm offensive. In recent weeks, it has also donated hundreds of thou-sands of surgical masks and test kits to the Philippines and Pakistan, sent teams of medics to Iran and Iraq, and extended a $500m loan to help Sri Lanka combat the virus.

While COVID-19 first emerged in Wuhan in December, Beijing says it has now curbed its spread, with new domestic cases dwindling to zero on Thursday. But as other governments now scramble to cope with the pan-demic, China is sending masks,

medical supplies and experts.It comes as Beijing and

Washington are engaged in public opinion war over China’s recent mass expulsion of US journalists and President Donald Trump’s continued use of the phrase “Chinese virus” to describe the coronavirus.

Trump slammed China for its lack of transparency over the pandemic that has now infected more than 240,000 worldwide, saying “the world is paying a big price” in a news conference on Thursday. China’s foreign min-istry hit back yesterday, saying the US was trying to “shift the blame” for the pandemic.

With the US also battling the virus on its home turf, analysts say China is rushing to reposition itself as an alternative global leader. “Now, with the US government under Trump failing to provide any meaningful international response and the EU occupied with national responses, it offers China’s gov-ernment a unique opportunity to

step into the empty spot,” said Marina Rudyak, an expert in Chinese foreign aid at the Uni-versity of Heidelberg.

By doing so, China was also trying to rewrite the COVID-19 narrative, deflecting criticism of its initial attempts to cover up the outbreak and posing as the saviour of “other countries who either delayed their response or were less prepared than China,” added Rudyak.

President Xi Jinping pledged assistance to hardest-hit Italy and Spain in phone calls with their prime ministers, the

Xinhua news agency reported.Two Chinese medical teams

were sent to Italy in a high-profile show of solidarity with the earliest European Union partner in Xi’s massive “Belt and Road” infrastructure project.

Italy is now the second hardest-hit country in the world with more than 35,000 cases.

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Twitter this week that China would ship two million masks to Europe “immediately” and expressed her gratitude to Premier Li Keqiang. She said the

EU helped China in January, by donating equipment, and tweeted: “Today, we’re grateful for China’s support.”

Beijing also sent medical equipment to Serbia this week after an appeal for help. “It has turned out that without you Europe can hardly defend itself,” Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic told Beijing’s ambassador as Chinese virus tests arrived. He said the country had been waiting for its “Chinese brothers”.

The EU — of which Serbia is not a member — announced a ban on the export of medical equipment on Sunday, a move slammed by Vucic. Xinhua said more aid and doctors from China would arrive in Serbia in the next few days.

Beijing has in recent years challenged Brussels for influence in the Balkans, in particular through heavy loan-based infra-structure investment in cash-strapped countries. Other political allies which China has

supported or supplied include a number of African nations.

Meanwhile, Jack Ma, China’s richest man, donated two mil-lions masks to be distributed across Europe, with shipments having arrived in Belgium, Spain and Italy. Another million masks bound for France left China on Wednesday.

A front-page commentary by the state-run People’s Daily on Thursday emphasised China’s role as a “responsible major country” that willingly cooperates with other nations.

For some European coun-tries, China’s strategy appears to be working. “There are com-peting narratives evolving in Europe. Most people see China being responsible for this global crisis,” said Joerg Wuttke, pres-ident of the EU Chamber of Commerce in China. “But the generous humanitarian help from China will possibly swing the public opinion in Europe more in favour of China.”

COVID-19: Pakistan clerics urge early Zakat assistanceANATOLIA — KARACHI

Pakistan’s top religious authority yesterday called for the early distribution of Zakat — an obligatory annual charity in Islam — to support those with low incomes who are most vulnerable to an imminent eco-nomic slowdown due to the global coronavirus pandemic.

The Council of Islamic Ide-ology, a religious advisory body for the country’s parliament, urged the rich to give their Zakat, which accounts for 2.5% of the total yearly savings in the form of cash, gold or silver, earlier than usual.

Zakat is traditionally given in the Islamic lunar month of Ramadan which will begin this year in the last week of April.

“In view of the present sit-uation, it is better to distribute Zakat earlier than usual,” the statement said.

The call coincided with two more deaths from the novel coronavirus yesterday, raising the total number in the country to four.

Pakistan is at risk of facing a major economic crunch due to the global outbreak, having suspended travel with Europe and the US — the buyers of 70%

of the country’s exports.Though authorities have

ordered the closure of major markets, shopping malls and other public areas, many who subsist on daily income have not complied.

The number of coronavirus cases in Pakistan rose to 454 yesterday, with 245 in the southern province of Sindh alone. Health officials said new cases were also reported in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the northeastern Punjab province.

Most of the new patients had recently returned from neighbouring Iran, which has reported the highest number of cases after China and Italy.

The novel coronavirus emerged in Wuhan, China last December, and has spread to at least 163 countries and ter-ritories. The World Health Organization declared the out-break a pandemic.

Out of more than 246,000 confirmed cases, the death toll now exceeds 10,000 and over 86,000 have recovered, according to data compiled by the US-based Johns Hopkins University. Despite the rising number of cases, most who become infected suffer only mild symptoms and recover.

Pakistan PM calls for lifting of Iran sanctions

AFP — ISLAMABAD

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan called yesterday for the lifting of “unjust” US-led sanctions on neigh-bouring Iran, so Tehran can better deal with the novel coronavirus crisis.

Khan’s comments came after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani wrote to him asking for help in dealing with the novel coronavirus outbreak that has now killed at least 1,433 people in Iran. “I would stress and insist to the inter-national community to lift the sanctions on Iran,” Khan said at a press conference.

“It is very unjust they are dealing with such a large out-break on one side, and on the other they are facing interna-tional sanctions.”

Pakistan’s foreign office did not provide any additional details on Rouhani’s letter to Khan. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif took to Twitter on Tuesday to say that US sanctions were “impairing” Iran’s ability to fight the COVID-19 disease.

Pakistan shares a 960km border with Iran, with the main crossing point located at Taftan in Balochistan province.

Pakistan sealed its border with Iran last week, but not before hundreds of pilgrims returned home from Iran.

A man receives a coffee in a box pulled by a rope as a transportation system after a cafe adopted a social distance policy for their customers amid fears of coronavirus outbreak, in Bangkok yesterday.

Thai cafe serves coffee on wheels to maintain social distanceREUTERS — BANGKOK

A cafe in Thailand has started using a pulley system to serve coffee on wheels as coronavirus infections force businesses to practice social distancing.

Thailand has reported more than 300 coronavirus cases since January, but more than half were found this week alone, heightening fears of con-tracting the disease through physical contact.

To beat the fear, Art of Coffee in Bangkok has installed a rope and pulley system to serve coffee and tea at a

one-metre distance to limit contact between staff and customers.

“I took this idea from social distancing in China. We heard that it works in curbing the out-break of the disease and pre-venting new infections,” said Apirak Chamraksin, the cafe’s 39-year-old owner. The shop has also put up a sign saying it prefers electronic payments rather than cash, so staff do not have to handle notes and coins.

Many believe some of Thai-land’s earlier cases contracted the virus via banknotes received from infected tourists.

On the other end of the counter, customer Nopparattorn Promkaew waited as a cart car-rying his iced coffee was pulled towards him. A bottle of hand sanitizer was placed nearby.

He welcomed the initiative because the distance helped eliminate physical contact, even though the shop’s staff already wear face masks and rubber gloves. “At first, I was a little worried about physical contact with others. But after seeing what the cafe did, I think they pay attention to customers’ concerns. I’m very happy about it,” he said.

Australia hunts 2,700 cruise passengersAFP — SYDNEY

Australia issued an urgent call yesterday for 2,700 cruise ship passengers who disembarked in central Sydney to isolate themselves and contact author-ities, after four travellers tested positive for COVID-19.

New South Wales author-ities said they had deemed the New Zealand-bound Ruby Princess “low risk” and let pas-sengers spill into the centre of the country’s most populous city on Thursday.

They later discovered that three passengers and one of the 1,100 crew members had tested positive. The ship was on a cruise from Sydney to New Zealand when passengers fell sick and 13 were tested for flu mid-voyage. The swabs were later tested for corona-virus and four came back pos-itive. “That obviously is a cause for us to have some concern,” said New South Wales state health minister Brad Hazzard.

The ship is currently far off the coast of Sydney with the 1,100 crew aboard, including the one member of staff who tested positive. “The company that owns that Ruby Princess is managing the issue,” said Hazzard. “The very big concern, is that those people came off the cruise with no knowledge of COVID actually being on their ship,” added Hazzard.

At least 24 Afghan security forces martyred in insider attackAFP — KABUL

At least two dozen Afghan security forces were killed yes-terday in an insider attack on their base in southern Afghan-istan, officials said, as fighting raged in the war-weary country while efforts to start talks with the Taliban stalled.

The pre-dawn attack in Zabul province comes as Afghanistan is grappling with several crises including an increase in Taliban violence that has thrown a supposed peace process into turmoil, mounting coronavirus cases,

and a political feud that has seen two men claim the presidency.

The attack in Zabul saw several “infiltrators” open fire on their comrades as they slept, according to provincial gov-ernor Rahmatullah Yarmal, in one of the deadliest attacks. The pre-dawn raid targeted a joint police and army headquarters near Qalat, the provincial capital.

“In the attack, 14 Afghan army forces and 10 policemen were killed,” Zabul provincial council chief Ata Jan Haq Bayan said and added that four other Afghan service members were

missing. “The attackers had connections with the Taliban insurgents,” Bayan said.

They fled in two military Humvee vehicles, along with a pickup truck, weapons and ammunition. Yarmal confirmed the toll.

Hours after the incident the defence ministry vowed to retaliate, while also giving a lower death toll for the attack, saying just 17 were killed.

The Afghan security forces “will not leave this attack unan-swered and will avenge the blood of the martyrs” the min-istry added in a statement.

China reports record number of imported coronavirus casesREUTERS — BEIJING/SHANGHAI

China’s imported coronavirus cases have risen to a record level, according to data released yesterday, with infected travellers reaching ever more provinces adding to pressure on authorities to step up tough entry rules and health protocols. The focus is on guarding against cases arriving from abroad as the spread of the coronavirus in Europe and North America sparks a rush home by Chinese expatriates, many of them students, raising fears of a second wave of infections just as China brings its epidemic under control. Mainland China had 39 new confirmed cases on Thursday, all of them imported. Of them, 14 were found in Guangdong, eight in Shanghai and six in Beijing. Imported cases were also reported in the cities of Tianjin, Liaoning, Heilongjiang, Shandong and Gansu in the north, as well as in Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangxi, Sichuan, bringing the total number of imported infections in China to 228. Wuhan saw no new cases for a second day.

Malaysia army to enforce curbs as cases surge above 1,000AFP — KUALA LUMPUR

Malaysia will deploy the army to support police in enforcing tough restrictions to halt the spread of the coronavirus, a minister said yesterday, as cases in the country surged above 1,000. People have been told to stay at home and all schools and most businesses have closed, while Malaysians are barred from travelling overseas and foreigners from entering the country.

But some have been ignoring the measures intro-duced this week, with people still going for walks in parks and eating out. Police had orig-inally been tasked with

enforcing the restrictions, which will last until the end of March, but Defence Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said the army would be brought in from Sunday. “We are confident that with the army’s help, stricter enforcement can be carried out,” he told a press conference.

Malaysia reported 130 new virus cases yesterday to take its total to 1,030 — the highest figure of any Southeast Asian country. Two people have died. Prime Minister Muhy-iddin Yassin previously appealed to Malaysians to abide by the restrictions, saying they are not an excuse to take a holiday or hang out with friends.

Enhanced community quarantine in PhilippinesA cyclist passes a nearly empty road in Manila yesterday, after the government imposed an enhanced community quarantine against the rising numbers of COVID-19 infections. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte ordered about half the country’s population to stay home for the next month in a drastic bid to curb the rising number of new coronavirus cases.

Beijing has showered struggling European nations with aid as part of a diplomatic charm offensive. In recent weeks, it has also donated hundreds of thousands of surgical masks and test kits to the Philippines and Pakistan, sent teams of medics to Iran and Iraq, and extended a $500m loan to help Sri Lanka combat the virus.

With movement in and out of the territory severely restricted since long before the pandemic emerged, the Gaza Strip is perhaps one of the few places on earth with a chance of staying virus-free.

08 SATURDAY 21 MARCH 2020VIEWS

CHAIRMANSHEIKH THANI BIN ABDULLAH AL THANI

EDITOR-IN-CHIEFDR. KHALID BIN MUBARAK AL-SHAFI

editorinchief@pen.com.qa

ACTING MANAGING EDITORMOHAMMED SALIM MOHAMED

m.salim@pen.com.qa

DEPUTY MANAGING EDITORMOHAMMED OSMAN ALI osman@pen.com.qa

EDITORIAL

THE whole world is passing through a difficult time in the wake COVID-19 pandemic making it compulsory for each and every individual to act responsibly fol-lowing a systematic discipline to overcome the challenge.

The State of Qatar through utilisation of all of its resources and timely planning is doing the best to contain the spread of coronavirus infection in the country. The country’s health authorities and all other ministries/departments concerned are also performing a tremendous job to give maximum medical care to all citizens and residents affected by the COVID-19 and to save the community from the viral infection.

By following all precautionary measures strictly, practicing social distancing, consulting heath care providers on appearance of symptoms of the disease, avoiding non-essential travels and panic buying, refraining from spreading rumours and doing such other things, the community can beat the threat.

Under guidance and directives of Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Minister of Public Health, H E Dr. Hanan Mohammed Al Kuwari, along with MoPH officials, has been at the forefront of the efforts to contain the spread of the new coronavirus in Qatar. World Health Organisation chief Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has also praised Qatar’s efforts to implement a com-prehensive approach to control COVID-19.

Under a prevailing environment of general fear spreading across the globe some irresponsible members of the community either fall victim to rumours or become source of circulating such disinformation through social media. The authorities concerned have time and again warned people of indulging in rumour mongering. Spokesperson of the Supreme Committee for Crisis Management, H E Lolwah bint Rashid bin Mohammed Al Khater, also clarified on Thursday that since the beginning of the crisis, the State of Qatar had pursued the principle of transparency in sharing of all information. She stressed the necessity not to circulate false rumours and news, and to take news from its official sources, including the accounts of the Government Communication Office and the Ministry of Public Health on social networking platforms.

The citizens and residents of Qatar should also be ready for volunteering. H E Lolwah Al Khater in a press briefing on Thursday also pointed out that the Ministry of Public Health in cooperation with several institutions such as the Qatar Red Crescent Society and Qatar Charity and others will open the door to volunteering for individuals aged between 20 and 45 years for medical or logistical support, each according to his experience, according to the conditions deter-mined by the Ministry of Public Health.

Collective responsibility

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Quote of the day

We would like to record that today 3 billion

people do not have handwashing facilities in

their homes and that two out of five health care

facilities lack these facilities as well.

Daniella Bostrom, Communications Manager for UN-Water

Members of a volunteer group carry out disinfection works as a precaution against COVID-19 pandemic at a shopping area in Gaza City, yesterday.

Gazans may be trying to make light of coronavirus on social media, comparing lockdowns to the Israeli blockade, but fears are growing of a disas-trous outbreak in the Pales-tinian territory.

With movement in and out of the territory severely restricted since long before the pandemic emerged, the Gaza Strip is perhaps one of the few places on earth with a chance of staying virus-free.

But experts warn that the crippling blockade and high poverty rates, along with a densely-packed population and weak health system, create perfect conditions for a rapid outbreak, with

one comparing the risk of transmission to that on a cruise ship.

In her small kitchenette in Gaza City, 80-year-old Mariam al-Khatib stacked away cleaning products and tinned goods. She said that despite living through six wars, she was terrified of COVID-19.

“Everyone is afraid. This is more important than a war. Nothing like this has hap-pened since the day I was born,” she said. “If corona arrives in Gaza, many people will die. There is no treatment except to pray to God.”

Israel has enforced its blockade since 2007, when the Islamist group Hamas seized control of Gaza.

It argues the measures are necessary to isolate Hamas, considered a terrorist organi-sation by most Western coun-tries. Israel and Hamas have fought three wars since 2008.

Critics say the blockade punishes and impoverishes all of Gaza’s residents and feeds radicalism.

Gaza’s only other border, with Egypt to the south, has been closed for much of the past decade.

It has been partly re-opened in the past two years, but crossings into Egypt are limited as reaching Cairo and other cities requires an arduous journey through the restive Sinai region.

Gaza has had no airport since it was bombed by Israel in the early 2000s during a Palestinian intifada, or uprising.

Khatib’s son Mustafa, 51, said he understood the “feelings of people (in iso-lation or quarantine) all over

the world -- we have had a quarantine-like situation since 2007”.

In Gaza, Palestinians are closely tracking the pandemic through incessant media cov-erage -- and preparing for the worst. Despite having no cases registered in the Strip so far, schools are closed and more than 2,700 people are in home isolation, mostly having returned from Egypt.

Matthias Schmale, Gaza director of the United Nations agency for Palestinian ref-ugees UNRWA, said he was already operating under out-break conditions, putting in place social-distancing measures. UNRWA runs schools for over 250,000 children in the coastal Strip.

“The blockade may well help to contain corona, but if it breaks out I would use the comparison with the cruise ship off Japan,” he said, referring to the Diamond Princess, where more than 700 of the ship’s 3,700 pas-sengers and crew fell ill.

Much of Gaza’s population live in overcrowded refugee camps, with large families common.

“It is an illusion to think you can manage it in a closed-off space like this,” Schmale said.

Israeli restrictions and political tensions have caused Gaza’s health facilities to deteriorate over the past decade, said Gerald Rocken-schaub, head of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Palestinian office.

The Strip has only 60 intensive care (ICU) beds for its two million people and not all are operational due to staff shortages, he told AFP.

“Gaza’s health system has

been facing de-development over the last years because of the chronic (Israeli) closure,” he said, pointing to shortages of electricity, medicine and human resources.

“More than 90 percent of the drinking water is basically unfit for human consumption, and on top of that you have over-crowdedness,” he added.

Israel said it has been working to ensure the supply of medical supplies to the Strip, including facilitating the delivery of 500 WHO-funded coronavirus testing kits.

It blames Hamas for Gaza’s lack of development.

Hamas authorities are preparing to build 1,000 iso-lation rooms near the southern border with Egypt.

With the Islamist move-ment’s Gaza leader Yahya Sinwar watching over, bull-dozers this week cleared ground where temporary cabins are to be erected.

Palestinians suffering from cancer and other serious diseases are currently allowed to leave Gaza through Israel for treatment inside the Jewish state or in the occupied West Bank.

It is as yet unclear if Israel, which has imposed tight restrictions on its own popu-lation, will allow seriously ill coronavirus patients to be transferred from the Strip.Schmale warned any outbreak could quickly overwhelm Gaza’s health capabilities.

“Everything I am hearing is if the outbreak reaches the magnitude where you need more than 60 ICU beds to treat, it will become increas-ingly difficult and could well turn into a disaster of gigantic proportions.”

THE WASHINGTON POST

If Latin America is hard hit by the coronavirus epidemic, as it now appears it will be, two of its political leaders will bear outsize responsibility. Presidents Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil and Andrés Manuel López Obrador of Mexico govern the region's two most populous countries by far, with more than 325 million people between them. Yet both have minimized the risk of the novel coronavirus and resisted - or even flouted - measures to prevent its spread.

Bolsonaro mingled with supporters at a rally as recently as Sunday, even though his own health min-istry recommended that he isolate himself because he has

had close contact with infected officials. At a news conference Wednesday, he warned against "hysteria" and said no one should be sur-prised to see him ride a crowded subway in Sao Paulo or a ferry in Rio de Janeiro. This weekend he is planning a two-day celebration of his 65th birthday.

Never mind that Brazil's covid-19 case count had risen to 534 confirmed cases on Thursday, including the pres-ident of the Senate, national security adviser and other senior officials. Thanks to Bolsonaro, the federal gov-ernment has taken few pre-ventive measures, leaving borders, schools and busi-nesses open. Though some state governors have stepped up and imposed closures,

Brazil remains wide-open to the pandemic. No wonder hundreds of thousands of people in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo banged pots and pans from their homes on Tuesday and Wednesday in protest.

López Obrador, a populist like his Brazilian counterpart, has been almost as heedless of the mounting threat. Mexico, as of Thursday, had 118 reported covid-19 cases, but the president was still resisting restrictions on travel and commercial activity. There are "pressures of all types," he said Wednesday. "Close the airport, shut down everything, paralyze the economy. No." He said his pri-ority was to protect "all the people who work, who live by economic activity, by what

they can get day to day."The concern for ordinary

workers is understandable, especially in a country with a large informal economy. But López Obrador, like Bol-sonaro, has been cavalier in his personal response to the virus, rejecting his health minister's recommendation that he abstain from hugs and kisses. "You have to hug," he said at a news con-ference this month. "Nothing is going to happen." Last weekend, he acted on his words, plunging into a crowd and repeatedly kissing a baby. His government is fol-lowing his lead, last weekend limiting some sports events and public gatherings but still allowing a large music fes-tival to go forward in Mexico City.

Gaza: Uniquely shielded, yetultra-vulnerable to COVID-19

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A failure of leadership in Latin America

Established in 1996

ADEL ZAANOUN AFP

09SATURDAY 21 MARCH 2020 EUROPE

Nearly 300,000 EU citizens stranded abroadREUTERS — BRUSSELS

As many as 300,000 European Union citizens are seeking repa-triation due to the coronavirus outbreak, with Latin America and Southeast Asia two regions from where it is proving tough to get people home, the EU’s top diplomat said yesterday.

While efforts to return Euro-peans in North Africa have been swift, the EU has been hampered in some other countries, in part because of a lack of information on how many Europeans are overseas and a reliance on com-mercial airlines.

“We are coordinating the operations to repatriate thou-sands of Europeans who are stranded abroad. We are talking

about 100,000 who are regis-tered (with embassies), but there are many more, maybe close to 300,000,” EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell told reporters by telephone.

“Little by little, we are trying to bring people home,” he said.

With Spaniards stuck in countries such as Peru, the EU is relying on commercial airlines — many of which are scaling back flights due to the virus — to pick them up because Latin America is too far away for the bloc’s crisis recovery aircraft.

Borrell said one airport in Ecuador had been reluctant to allow planes from Europe to land to pick up Europeans, fearing they might be bringing the virus with them.

He said the problem had now been overcome, although he warned of the dangers of such misleading reports during the coronavirus crisis.

“It shows that disinfor-mation can be harmful, to say that European flights are bringing the disease,” he said.

An internal EU report seen by Reuters this week said Russian media have deployed a “significant disinformation cam-paign” against the West to worsen the impact of the coro-navirus, generate panic and sow distrust.

However, Borrell did not blame any country in Ecuador’s case and stressed that disinfor-mation came from many sources.

Residents pose behind the window of their home with objects significant to them during the coronavirus lockdown imposed by the Belgian government in an attempt to slow down the COVID-19 outbreak, in Brussels yesterday.

Europe’s mounting virus cases prompt tougher government responseBLOOMBERG - BRUSSELS

Europe solidified its status as the new epicenter of the coro-navirus, with new cases and fatalities rising particularly in Spain and France, prompting governments to seek more extensive lockdowns in their battle to slow the pandemic.

In Spain, the death toll rose by 31 percent to 1,002, according to the health min-istry, with the total number of confirmed cases rising by 2,833, to 19,980. While number of new cases slowed from the previous day, that may be due to limited testing. The picture was similarly bleak in France, which reported a 41 percent increase in fatalities, to 372, and almost 11,000 confirmed cases.

While China, where the virus originated late last year, is reporting no new cases, Europe remains firmly in the grip of the pandemic even as governments shut borders and expand measures to enforce social distancing.

Bavaria became the first German state to ban public gatherings, a move that is likely to be emulated by the other 15 states.

“We are almost completely winding down public life in Bavaria,” Premier Markus Soeder said at a news con-ference in Munich yesterday. Germany has more than 15,000 confirmed cases, though its death toll is a comparatively low 44.

Chancellor Angela Merkel, who said this week that the coronavirus represents her country’s biggest challenge since World War II, will consult regional leaders on Sunday to discuss efforts to contain the outbreak. Schools in Germany have been closed for the better part of a week, retailers have shut their doors, and many res-taurants are open only during the day.

Austria, with about 2,300 cases, is extending its lockdown measures until the Easter holiday but isn’t tightening them further, Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said.

Italy, Europe’s hardest hit country, with 3,405 fatalities, has been under government-enforced lockdown for the past week.

Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte’s government is set to reinforce and extend the near-total quarantine after the number of fatalities surpassed China’s. The extension may include a ban on outdoor sports and on “passeggiate,” or strolls, with citizens allowed to leave their homes only for work, h e a l t h r e a s o n s , o r emergencies.

Globally, the virus is spreading far more aggres-sively: It took three months for

the first 100,000 cases to be reported, but the next 100,000 were reached in 12 days, on March 18.

By yesterday — two days later — the tally was halfway to the 300,000 mark.

In the UK, deaths from the outbreak more than doubled, to 144, between Tuesday and Thursday, and the government has stepped in to close schools to most pupils and channel financial aid to businesses.

UK government advisers said yesterday that citizens may need to keep away from each other for most of the year to contain the spiraling outbreak.

In France, President Emmanuel Macron said people need to strike the right balance between social distancing and keeping the country opera-tional. While “partying on the streets” and “going to the beach” is plainly irresponsible, people in crucial lines of work should continue doing their jobs, he said.

The growing number of border closings have disrupted free movement within the EU — one of the pillars of European integration — making it harder to transport key supplies.

“We need to find a middle way,” Macron said.

Cannes Film Festival postponed due to spread of virus

REUTERS — PARIS

The Cannes Film Festival, the world’s largest, was forced to postpone its latest edition in May due to the spread of the coronavirus, organisers of the annual event on the French Riviera said.

The postponement follows weeks of speculation over whether the festival, which draws thousands of filmmakers, celebrities and executives to the city, would be able to go ahead between May 12-23.

“At this time of global health crisis, our thoughts go to the victims of the COVID-19 and we express our solidarity with all

of those who are fighting the disease,” the statement said.

France is in its third day of a lockdown aimed at containing the spread of the coronavirus. Almost 11,000 cases have now been officially diagnosed and 372 people have died.

The organisers, who had announced US director Spike Lee as president of this year’s jury, said that several new dates were under consideration, including the end of June-beginning of July.

It is not the first time the festival has been postponed. Its inaugural event in 1939 was cut short after the opening screening of the “Hunchback of

Notre Dame” because of Ger-many’s invasion of Poland the next day. The prizes were even-tually awarded in 2002.

It was also interrupted in May 1968 amid student and labour protests sweeping across France.

The announcement is another blow to the film industry. Beyond the star-studded glitzy screenings, pro-duction and distribution firms head to the Cote d’Azur to com-plete deals, while executives from across the world gather to represent their nations’ film industries.

The Cannes festival is the latest event in the

entertainment industry to be postponed or canceled. New York’s Tribeca Film Festival was put back earlier this month as was the release of big budget movies including “Mulan” and the latest James Bond movie “No Time to Die”.

Music festivals Glastonbury and Coachella have been can-celled and theatres in London and on Broadway have been closed.

“As soon as the devel-opment of the French and inter-national health situation will allow us to assess the real pos-sibility, we will make our decision known,” the Cannes organisers said.

Greek forces point

green laser light at

asylum seekers

ANATOLIA — EDIRNE

Greek security forces have begun pointing green laser light — which can cause eye damage including temporary and permanent blindness — at asylum seekers to push them back toward north-western Turkey, according to a health official yesterday.

Asylum seekers have been waiting on the Greek border for the last 22 days to cross through Edirne to reach Europe.

Greek security forces use dis-proportionate force such as tear gas, water cannons and live ammunition on asylum seekers.

From day one, asylum seekers have been subjected to Greece’s inhumane treatment, Ali Cengiz Kalkan, the provincial health director of northwestern Edirne province, said.

Kalkan said green laser was extremely dangerous to human eyes.

“On the one side we see Turkey which extends a hand of compassion to children, women and asylum seekers. On the con-trary, Greece mistreats them,” he said.

Turkey currently hosts some 3.7 million Syrian refugees, more than any other country in the world.

Meanwhile, due to incessant attacks on civilians in Idlib, Syria, one million refugees moved toward Turkey’s borders in the recent past. Ankara says it cannot absorb another refugee wave.

Globally, the virus is spreading far more aggressively: It took three months for the first 100,000 cases to be reported, but the next 100,000 were reached in 12 days, on March 18.

Serbian police detain 160 people for violating restrictionsANATOLIA — BELGRADE

Serbian police over the past two days have arrested some 160 people for violating isolation and curfew orders issued to stem the spread of the coronavirus, an official said yesterday.

Police chief Nebojsa Ste-fanovic said six people were detained for not remaining in isolation, while 154 others for violating the curfew.

The country on Sunday declared a state of emergency, restricting movement for anyone over age 65 in urban

areas and 70 in rural areas.A night curfew was also

imposed on Wednesday to curb the pandemic, which emerged in China last December and has since spread to 168 countries or ter-ritories, according to the World Health Organisation.

Violation of curfew is treated as an act of failure to comply with health regulations. Those who violate the order are fined nearly $1,400, and if the act is repeated more than once the person could be imprisoned for up to three years.

Bavaria Premier popular than Merkel: PollREUTERS — BERLIN

The premier of the southern state of Bavaria, Markus Soeder, is Germany’s most popular politician, a poll showed yesterday, boosting his chances of standing as the conservative chancellor candidate in the next election and succeeding Angela Merkel.

During the coronavirus crisis, which has hit Bavaria particularly hard, Soeder has impressed commentators by introducing tough steps to restrict social contact before the rest of Germany while dis-playing a calm and reassuring air.

The INSA poll for Focus magazine put Soeder, head of Bavaria’s conservative CSU, on

129 points, up 11 from a week ago and overtaking Merkel who came second on 126 points, making him Germany’s most popular politician for the first time.

After almost 15 years leading Europe’s biggest economy, Merkel has said she will not seek a fifth term and her conservative CDU party is in the midst of a leadership race after her protege said last month she would stand down.

The winner is in a strong position to run as German chancellor in a federal election due by October 2021.

Germany has recorded 10,999 cases of the corona-virus and 20 deaths. Soeder has led the way with school

closures and other social dis-tancing steps and has called a state of emergency in Bavaria.

In part hamstrung by Ger-many’s federal system, which gives a lot of power to the 16 states, Merkel has at times appeared dry and more hes-itant. Only on Wednesday evening did she address the public about the crisis in a rare television address.

A separate poll for Focus, conducted by Kantar, showed that among conservatives, Soeder was the most popular choice to run for chancellor, scoring 30 percent compared to 22 percent each for CDU candidates Friedrich Merz and Armin Laschet.

FROM LEFT: Bavaria’s Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann; Bavaria’s Economy Minister and Vice-State Premier Hubert Aiwanger; Bavaria’s State Premier Markus Soeder and Bavaria’s Health Minister Melanie Huml during a press conference at the Bavarian State Parliament in Munich, yesterday.

Finland is again world’s happiest country: UNAFP - HELSINKI

Good cheer may feel in short supply as the world reels under a global pandemic, but experts at the United Nations yesterday declared Finland to be the world’s happiest nation for the third year running.

Researchers for the World Happiness Report asked people in 156 countries to evaluate their own levels of happiness, and took into account measures such as GDP, social support, personal freedom and levels of corruption to give each nation a happiness score.

As in each of the previous seven reports, Nordic states dominated the top ten, along with countries such as Swit-zerland, New Zealand and Austria.

Luxembourg also edged into the tenth spot for the first time this year.

The happiest countries are those “where people feel a sense of belonging, where they trust and enjoy each other and their shared insti-tutions,” John Helliwell, one of the report’s authors, said in a statement.

“There is also more resil-ience, because shared trust reduces the burden of hard-ships, and thereby lessens the inequality of well-being,” he added.

Meanwhile, the countries at the bottom of this year’s

ranking are those afflicted by violent conflicts and extreme poverty, with Zimbabwe, South Sudan and Afghanistan classed as the world’s least happy countries.

Finland’s top spot in the happiness list has previously been met with raised eyebrows in the country whose popu-lation of 5.5 million is said to shy away from spontaneous demonstrations of joy, valuing instead the quiet and solitude of the country’s vast forests and thousands of lakes.

The northern country’s long dark winters were reputed to be behind high levels suicide, but a decade-long public health drive has helped cut rates by more than half.

Finland’s residents enjoy a high quality of life, security and public services, with rates of inequality and poverty among the lowest of all OECD countries.

The data for this year’s World Happiness Report was collected in 2018 and 2019, and is therefore not impacted by the widespread restrictions imposed by many countries to stem the spread of the new coronavirus.

However, the report’s authors predict that the lockdown conditions many of the world’s residents are now living under could, paradoxi-cally, boost happiness in future.

10 SATURDAY 21 MARCH 2020EUROPE / AMERICAS

Brazil declares state of emergencyas Bolsonaro's approval slipsREUTERS - BRASILIA

Brazil declared a state of emergency yesterday, freeing up funds for the federal government to fight a corona-virus crisis that has hurt the popularity of far-right President Jair Bolsonaro’s government.

The Senate approved a measure letting the government waive fiscal targets this year, with senators voting remotely after two of them tested pos-itive for the virus causing the COVID-19 respiratory disease.

Bolsonaro is facing criticism as he seeks to balance major public health concerns with protecting Brazil’s long-ailing economy. The pandemic poses serious political risks for the populist, who initially labeled it a “fantasy.”

In comments to journalists yesterday, he slammed state governors for taking “extreme measures” that hurt the economy.

Sao Paulo state Governor João Doria said a statewide public emergency would go into force today, aimed at allowing the government to better fight the virus. All parks and non-essential public services will close until the end of April.

Doria defended the move and criti-

cised Bolsonaro. “We’re doing what he’s not doing,”

Doria said. “And when he does do it, he does it wrong.”

Approval of Bolsonaro’s government fell to a record low this week, according to XP Investimentos poll released yes-terday. Just 30 percent of those surveyed rated his administration “good” or “great,” compared with 36 percent calling it “bad” or “awful.”

A record-high 17 percentsaid his gov-ernment is to blame for the current eco-nomic situation, as blame attached to the previous three administrations slowly evaporates, the poll showed.

Many Brazilians have been drumming pots and pans in their homes nightly in a traditional protest against Bolsonaro, who ignored medical advice to meet crowds of supporters on Sunday despite having several aides diagnosed with virus.

Bolsonaro said he expected June, a winter month in the southern hemisphere nation, to be the most critical period for the coronavirus outbreak. At least seven people have died thus far, with over 600 cases confirmed — doubling in two days.

Bolsonaro has banned entry for cit-izens from China and the European

Union, but has held back from closing international airports as Latin American neighbors Colombia, Peru, Argentina and Venezuela have done.

The president blamed state gov-ernors for the economic impact of the virus. Brazil’s currency and stock market were among the world’s biggest losers over the past two weeks.

“(Governors) are taking extreme measures that aren’t in their purview ... commerce stops and people don’t have anything to eat,” he told reporters

outside his official residence, “The med-icine has to be proportional (to the illness), or it kills.”

Rio Governor Wilson Witzel on Thursday said he would cancel all inter-national flights in and out of the state, as well as domestic flights to Brazilian states with coronavirus cases.

But airlines and federal regulators said he does not have the power to do it. Infrastructure Minister Tarciso Freitas said the federal government will not close airports and bus stations.

LatAm forum sees showdown on Trump’s Venezuela policyBLOOMBERG - CARACAS

The election for the head of a Latin America democracy watchdog has effectively turned into a test of the popularity of Donald Trump’s hard-line policy against Venezuelan Pres-ident Nicolas Maduro.

The Organization of American States, based in Washington, is scheduled to choose its secretary general in a session today.

Luis Almagro, the US-backed incumbent who has repeatedly called Maduro a dic-tator, is seeking another five-year term. His opponent, Maria Fernanda Espinosa, a former

Ecuadorean foreign minister, counts countries seeking a less confrontational approach to the Venezuelan regime such as Mexico and Argentina as her top backers.

The Trump administration and allies including Colombia have called for Maduro’s removal and for new elections after he won a 2018 vote that opponents and many interna-tional observers consider fraught with irregularities. Mexico and Argentina say that ousting him would be inter-fering with another nation’s sovereignty.

Peru’s Hugo de Zela, a third candidate who had promoted

OAS dialog to resolve the situ-ation in Venezuela, withdrew from the race this week. That probably boosts Almagro’s chances, said Benjamin Gedan, deputy director of the Latin America program at the Wilson Center, a Washington-based think tank.

The 34 member countries will hold a secret ballot, each with one vote, and the winner needs a simple majority.

“Almagro’s attention to Ven-ezuela reflects the gravity of the crisis, including democratic col-lapse, a humanitarian nightmare and a refugee emer-gency,” Gedan said.

“But his approach has alienated many governments. Almagro has been unusually outspoken for a secretary general, and willing to promote action absent regional con-sensus, contrary to OAS tradition.”

The oldest regional forum, Organization of American

States in recent years has taken on a key role in election monitoring in Latin America, making it a lightning rod for criticism, particularly by leftist governments who see Almagro promoting a conservative agenda in the organisation.

In November, the OAS denounced irregularities in the re-election of Evo Morales in Bolivia.

The vote was followed by street protests, a police mutiny and an eventual army inter-vention that forced Morales out. Governments friendly to Morales, including Mexico, called it a coup, while Morales opponents said the army was

stepping in to restore legal order.

The coronavirus outbreak has complicated the logistics of the vote. The organisation announced on Tuesday that the US Department of Health and Human Services would inspect its headquarters in advance of the meeting as a health safeguard.

Almagro himself underwent a test last week that came back negative after he had contact with someone who was infected.

Caribbean nations and Mexico have called for delaying the vote, citing the dangers of gathering amid the outbreak.

Putin’s relative launches political party, says reportREUTERS - MOSCOW

One of President Vladimir Putin’s relatives has launched a political party and said he wants to contest parlia-mentary elections next year, the Kommersant daily reported yesterday.

Roman Putin, son of Pres-ident Putin’s cousin Igor, told Kommersant in an interview that his People of Business party was a right-wing con-servative project aimed at sup-porting small businesses and entrepreneurs.

His party would support the ruling pro-Putin United Russia party in parts of the country where it lacked seats, he said.

Like President Putin, Roman Putin, 42, is a former employee of Russia’s FSB security service.

The Spark database of Russian companies shows he is the director of a firm called Putin Consulting Ltd.

Roman Putin said in an interview that he had not dis-cussed his political plans with the president, but did not anticipate problems.

“I have my own position and I intend to promote it through political processes,” he told Kommersant.

“... Even in America under Bush there were many Bushes — governors, senators. Members of the same family can even compete.”

He said that he had no intention of competing with President Putin however who is in the process of trying to change the constitution to allow himself to run again in the year 2024.

“Our country needs a strong leader, especially in the situation of a global crisis,” said Roman Putin.

“There is no alternative to Vladimir Putin.”

Canada, US agree to turn back migrants at borderAP - TORONTO

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said yesterady that Canada and the United States have reached a reciprocal agreement under which they will now be sending back migrants who attempt to cross illegally anywhere at the border.

Trudeau called it an excep-tional measure that will protect Canadians amid the pandemic. It addresses concerns about the difficulty of screening refugee claimants for the new virus.

Trudeau, meanwhile, said his government has received 500,000 applications for employment insurance

compared to just 27,000 for the same week last year. Those laid off are able to access employment insurance. The cri-teria for those eligible was expanded earlier this week.

“Over the past week, Service Canada and many gov-ernment agencies have received a historic number of calls from concerned Canadians,” Trudeau said.

Thousands of migrants have fled north to Canada since 2017. There is a longstanding agreement between the United States and Canada that requires those seeking asylum to apply in the first country they arrive in. So, if they crossed from the US at a legal Canadian port of

entry, they would be returned and told to apply in the US But if they request asylum on Canadian soil at a location other than an official crossing, the process is allowed to go forward.

In most cases, the refugees are released and allowed to live in Canada, taking advantage of generous social welfare ben-efits. Now they will be turned back to American authorities under the new agreement.

Many migrants were crossing the border into Quebec from Champlain, NY at Roxham Road, about 50km south of Montreal.

“These measures will be reciprocal so individuals

crossing from Canada into the US or the US into Canada will be treated the same. They will be returned,” Public Safety Min-ister Bill Blair said.

Blair called the measure temporary.

Blair said about 45 to 50 have been crossing illegally each day but on Thursday just 17 crossed. The government earlier announced that anybody crossing would have to be quar-antined for 14 days.

Trudeau also further con-firmed that all non-essential travel between Canada and the United States will end at mid-night yesterday. The two coun-tries announced the measure earlier this week.

COVID-19 deaths rocketin Italy; alarmed regionsimpose more restrictionsREUTERS - ROME

Italy’s coronavirus death toll soared yesterday and regions imposed new restrictions in an increasingly desperate effort to halt infections, with one banning walks in parks and another prohibiting jogging and bike rides.

“We already have many hundreds of dead. What more is needed before people under-stand the tragedy we are facing?” said Sergio Venturi, head of the coronavirus response team in the wealthy n o r t h e r n r e g i o n o f Emilia-Romagna.

The national death toll from the outbreak over the past 24 hours leapt by 627 to 4,032 - by far the largest daily rise in absolute terms since the con-tagion emerged a month ago.

Italy overtook China on Thursday as the country to reg-ister the most deaths from the virus. Before yesterday, it had never recorded more than 475 fatalities in a single day.

The total number of cases climbed to 47,021 from a pre-vious 41,035, the Civil Pro-tection Agency said.

“Maybe the peak won’t come next week, but the week after,” Civil Protection chief Angelo Borrelli told Rai radio.

Responding to the growing crisis, the northern region of Veneto shut parks and said res-idents could no longer go for walks, while adjacent Emilia-Romagna banned jogging and bicycle rides, saying people had to stay indoors to prevent infections.

Lombardy, at the epicentre of the epidemic, said about 100 soldiers would soon be deployed to help local police enforce the lockdown, and called on the government to impose new measures to keep Italians at home.

Officials are especially worried by the situation in Lombardy’s capital and Italy’s second city, Milan.

The country’s largest cities had so far been relatively lightly hit by the outbreak, but there are now 3,804 people infected in the financial hub and its hinterland.

The number of new cases in and around Milan rose by 526, or 16 percent, the largest daily increase for any province in Lombardy.

“The frontline is now in Milan,” Massimo Galli, head of the infectious diseases unit at the city’s Sacco hospital, told La Repubblica newspaper. “I am extremely worried by what is happening ... there are still too many people out and about.”

The government last week ordered restaurants, bars and most shops to shut down nationwide until March 25. In addition, it shut schools and

universities and told everyone to stay at home for all but abso-lutely essential needs until April 3.

Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said on Thursday the measures would have to be extended, but gave no further details.

Looking to boost morale, all Italian radio stations, for the first time, simultaneously broadcast the national anthem,

followed by three iconic songs, “Azzurro,” “La canzone del sole” and “Nel blu dipinto di blu”.

However, the national mood has grown gloomier this week as the death toll has risen inexorably.

“It feels like we are in another world. I don’t know, it is a really bad feeling. I hope it will finish soon because really, this it is not good,” said Rome resident Anna Marcotullio, 53.

A vehicle of the Italian police sanitizes a street amid concerns about the spread of COVID-19 in Milan, yesterday.

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro speaks to the press as he leaves from Alvorada Palace to Planalto Palace in Brasilia, yesterday.

Johnny Depp’s libel case against UK tabloid stalled by pandemic

The Organisation of American States, based in Washington, is scheduled to choose its Secretary-General in a session today.

AP — LONDON

Johnny Depp’s libel suit against British tabloid The Sun was put on hold yesterday as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Depp is suing the newspa-per’s parent company, News Group Newspapers, and exec-utive editor Dan Wootton over a 2018 article claiming he was violent and abusive to his former wife Amber Heard.

A trial had been due to start on Monday at the High Court in London, with Depp, Heard and other celebrities due to give evidence.

But judge Andrew Nicol said Friday that he had “reached the reluctant con-clusion that the trial does have to be adjourned.”

The judge said two of Depp’s legal representatives had already had to self-isolate because of the virus, and added that “no-one can predict whether others involved in the case, and I do not exclude myself, will either become infected or need to self-isolate.”

Depp’s lawyer, Jennifer Afia, told a preliminary hearing this week that the actor was at a “remote location” in the south of France and could not travel because of restrictions imposed to fight the pandemic.

But the newspaper’s attorney, Adam Wolanski, alleged Depp wanted to delay the trial “because he’s a coward and because he knows he’s going to lose.”

He said that despite the pandemic, Heard was willing to travel from Los Angeles to London to testify, or to give evidence by video.

Depp, 56, and Heard, 33, met on the set of 2011 comedy “The Rum Diary” and married in Los Angeles in February 2015. They divorced in year 2017.

Depp is also suing Heard for libel in the United States.

11SATURDAY 21 MARCH 2020 AMERICAS / CLASSIFIEDS

New York shutters, but Trump says no national lockdownAFP — NEW YORK

New York followed California yesterday in locking down to stem the coronavirus pandemic as President Donald Trump declared the United States was already “winning” the war despite a rapid rise in confirmed cases and deaths.

Governor Andrew Cuomo ordered non-essential busi-nesses to close and banned all gatherings in New York state, a day after his counterpart Gavin Newsom told California’s 40 million residents to stay at home.

“We’re all in quarantine now,” Cuomo told reporters, warning of civil fines and man-datory closures for anyone vio-lating the order, which takes effect tomorrow evening.

The escalation came as the

total number of COVID-19-linked deaths in the US rose to 210 — more than double in three days — with more than 14,600 confirmed infections, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

Despite the surge, Trump said the world’s number one power was “winning” and “going to win this war,” and there was no need for a national lockdown mirroring the action taken in California and New York. “Those are really two hotbeds. Those are

probably the two hottest of them all in terms of hotspots,” Trump told the now-daily briefing by the White House virus task force, adding that states in the American Midwest were not registering as many confirmed cases.

“So no, we’re working with the governors and I don’t think we’ll ever find that necessary,” he added.

The number of confirmed infections in New York jumped to 7,000 yesterday, largely because of an increase in

testing, Cuomo said, as he announced he would pass an executive order mandating that only essential businesses can remain open from late Sunday.

He stressed that essential services included grocery stores, pharmacies and food delivery.

Cuomo said that under “Matilda’s Law,” named after his mother, “non-essential gatherings of individuals of any size” were cancelled.

He ordered residents to only exercise alone and not hold any group activities outside, such as basketball.

He said citizens should avoid public transport “unless urgent and absolutely nec-essary.” “New York state (is) on pause,” he said. “These actions will cause disruption. They will

cause much unhappiness. I understand that,” Cuomo added. He dismissed references to the measures as “shelter-in-place,” which they have been called in California, but the rules effectively mount to the same thing.

California’s statewide directive, which went into force Thursday evening, also instructs residents to remain at home unless necessary.

It allows gas stations, phar-macies, banks and laundry services to remain open while restaurants can still provide take-out and delivery.

“They are taking strong steps. I applaud them,” Trump said, referring to Cuomo and Newsom.

Trump also announced Friday that the US and Mexico have agreed to restrict

non-essential travel across their border beginning on Saturday.

He said the move, similar to one already announced with northern neighbor Canada, was necessary to prevent the “spread the infection to our border agents, migrants, and to the public at large.” On Capitol Hill, US senators began critical negotiations over a $1 trillion emergency stimulus package to help Americans ravaged by the coronavirus.

The version unveiled late on Thursday includes onetime “recovery rebates” of up to $1,200 for adults earning under $99,000 annually, and hundreds of billions of dollars in loan guarantees to indus-tries hard hit by the crises including airlines and small businesses.

California Governororders entire state to stay at homeAFP — LOS ANGELES

All 40 million residents of Cali-fornia were ordered to stay at home indefinitely in a bid to battle the coronavirus pandemic in the nation’s most populous state.

The statewide directive, which Governor Gavin Newsom said goes into effect “this evening,” is the most dra-matic containment measure yet by a US state.

“There is a recognition of our interdependence that requires of this moment that we direct a statewide order for people to stay at home,” he said. No end date was set for the measure because the pan-demic is a “dynamic situation,” said Newsom.

California has been among the worst hit by the virus, with at least 18 confirmed deaths so far, according to a Johns Hopkins University tally.

Around 1,000 Californians have tested positive.

Although a mandatory executive order, the measure will likely not be enforced by police, Newsom said.

“People I think recognize the need to do more, and to meet this moment, and people will self-regulate their behavior,” he said.

Essential jobs and tasks such as grocery shopping

would be exempt, he said. “We want people to go to essential jobs -- we want people to deal with their essentials in a thoughtful and judicious way.” Gas stations, pharmacies, banks and laundry services all count as “critical infrastructure” and will remain open.

Restaurants can still provide take-out and delivery, and food banks will still operate. In a letter to US Pres-ident Donald Trump Wednesday requesting federal help, Newsom had warned that cases were doubling every four days in some parts of the state.

“We project that roughly 56 percent of our population -- 25.5 million people -- will be infected with the virus over an eight week period,” he wrote.

The new stay-at-home order is intended to reduce that figure, Newsom said Thursday.

“The point of the stay at home order is to make those numbers move -- to bend that curve,” he said.

“That means that projection no longer becomes a reality because we changed our behavior.” Under the projec-tions, California would have a shortfall of around 10,000 hos-pital beds, Newsom said.

In addition to the isolation order, university dormitories, hotels and motels were being leased to provide more space.

With threat of pandemic growing, acts of kindness abound in USAFP - LOS ANGELES

From grocery shopping for the elderly to delivering meals or offering free classes online, acts of kindness during the corona-virus pandemic are providing uplifting moments of joy in a United States beset by anxiety.

In California, the most pop-ulous state in the nation and one of the hardest hit by the virus, thousands are using internet apps to offer their services to neighbours in need.

In San Diego, for example, a Facebook group created to coor-dinate volunteer efforts — San Diego Community Volunteers

— said it has seen a huge uptick in the number of people offering to help, going from 50 members to 400 in a matter of days.

Elsewhere, the popular res-taurant chain Puesto, which was forced to shut down because of the virus, gave away some 500 free care packages this week. “We will come back strong with tacos for everyone,” the restaurant said in an Instagram post after announcing it was shutting down. Supermarkets across the country have also reached out to help seniors, putting in place special hours for people 65 and over to ensure they avoid

crowds. The supermarket chain Raley’s, based in northern Cal-ifornia, said that as of March 21, it was starting a special program offering a pre-selected bag of groceries at a reduced price for seniors and people in need.

In Walnut Creek, near San Francisco, where residents have been ordered to stay home, a dentist is offering free emer-gency dental services to ease the congestion at hospital emer-gency rooms.

David Nisenboyn said he first consults by phone and video before determining whether to receive a patient.

“I’ve got plenty of time to do

consults if necessary... we’ve got three weeks of lockdowns!” he said. Further north, in the neigh-bouring state of Oregon, a company is turning its byproduct into a hand cleaning solution.

In the small town of Coos Bay, also in Oregon, coffee shop owner John Beane is hosting virtual story times for kids after shutting down his cafe.

“We come from the theatre and stories which are always a part of the shop,” Beane, the owner of So It Goes Coffeehouse, said. “Some of the very best parts of our work are the brilliant and curious children that we see mostly every day.

“Their schools are closed for now, as we are, and we have a lot of parents now at home taking care of them,” he added. “This was something we thought we might be able to do well for them.” In Washington state, the city of Seattle — the country’s coronavirus Ground Zero — music venues are trying to soothe fears over the pandemic by broadcasting live virtual concerts.

Celebrated Seattle-based author Ijeoma Oluo for her part has launched a relief fund to help artists who have been severely affected by the outbreak.

“I know that so far every speaking engagement I had for the next month has been can-celled or postponed, and I’m in the very rare and privileged position to be able to weather this financially,” she wrote on the GoFundMe page.

“This fund is aimed at helping those in the greater Seattle arts community who have been financially impacted by cancellations due to COVID-19, with priority given to BIPOC artists, nonbinary artists, and disabled artists - but we will try to help as many artists with need in Seattle as we can,” she added.

US restricting

non-essential

travel with

Mexico, Canada

AFP — WASHINGTON

The United States announced yesterday that it has agreed with Mexico and Canada to restrict non-essential travel because of the coronavirus outbreak and is planning to repatriate undocumented immigrants arriving from those countries.

President Donald Trump said the moves, reached in agreement with the Mexican and Canadian authorities, were necessary to prevent spreading the virus “to our border agents, migrants, and to the public at large.” “Those measures we are putting in place will protect the health of all three nations and reduce the incentive of mass global migration,” Trump said at a White House briefing.

He said they were nec-essary to deal with the “public health consequences of mass uncontrolled cross border movement” by “thousands of unscreened and unvetted” people. Trump and other top officials who took part in the briefing stressed that trade with Mexico and Canada would continue.

“Let me be clear that neither of these agreements with Canada or Mexico applies to lawful trade or commerce – essential commercial activ-ities will not be impacted,” acting Homeland Security Sec-retary Chad Wolf said.

Senators launch talks on $1 trillionstimulus, vote likely on MondayAFP — WASHINGTON

US senators began critical negotiations yesterday over a $1 trillion emergency stimulus package to help Americans ravaged by the coronavirus, with Republicans seeking rapid passage while Democrats push for stronger worker protections.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and his Dem-ocratic counterpart Chuck Schumer sat down for talks with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and other adminis-tration officials to thrash out compromise over the massive federal intervention.

The version unveiled late

Thursday includes onetime “recovery rebates” of up to $1,200 for adults earning under $99,000 annually, and hun-dreds of billions of dollars in loan guarantees to industries hard hit by the crises including airlines and small businesses.

“I have tasked bipartisan teams to reach agreement by the end of today, tonight,” McConnell told reporters, adding that he wants a vote on final passage on Monday before it goes to the House of Representatives.

President Donald Trump said he spoke by phone with the Senate leaders including a “very good telephone conversation”

with Schumer.“There’s tremendous spirit

to get something done,” Trump said.

McConnell has said the top priorities are “direct financial help” for Americans, relief for businesses, stabilization of the economy and job protection.

But Democrats, warning of a tough negotiation ahead, said McConnell’s measure leaves out critical provisions such as expanded unemployment insurance beyond one-time payments, additional paid family leave and paid sick leave, and prioritization of financial aid to American workers over corporations.

Firefighters wearing protection suites participate in an instruction as a form of contingency and security against the spread of the new coronavirus COVID-19, in Belo Horizonte, state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, yesterday.

Brazil warns of healthcare collapse over outbreakREUTERS — BRASILIA/SAO PAULO

Brazil began to process the daunting impact of the coronavirus outbreak yesterday, slashing growth outlooks, warning of a healthcare collapse and announcing new measures to combat a crisis that is hurting Pres-ident Jair Bolsonaro’s popularity.

The senate yesterday signed off on a state of emergency that will permit the government to waive fiscal targets this year.

The Economy Ministry lowered its growth forecast from 2.1% to zero — a number many economists believe remains highly ambitious - with a “significant” contraction coming in the second quarter.

Additionally, Health Minister Luiz Henrique Mandetta said Brazil’s healthcare system will collapse by the end of April. At least seven people have died thus far, with over 600 cases confirmed — doubling in two days. Many Brazilians have been drumming pots and pans in their homes nightly in a traditional protest against Bolsonaro, who ignored medical advice to meet crowds of supporters on Sunday. Bolsonaro said that the Brazilian economy cannot stop or the country will face a catastrophe. Speaking to business leaders, Bolsonaro said measures needed to be taken, but the closure of airports and roads was not advisable and would cause panic.

The escalation came as the total number of COVID-19-linked deaths in the US rose to 210 — more than double in three days — with more than 14,600 confirmed infections, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

12 SATURDAY 21 MARCH 2020CLASSIFIEDS

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HELPLINE GROUPCompany Registration, Local Sponsorship, Trademark, Feasibility Study, Tax systems and PRO Services. Our branches QATAR| KUWAIT | UAE | INDIA | UK | CANADA. (formed more than 3000 companies)HELPLINE GROUP, C Ring Road Tel: (+974)-44271100MOB: 77711129 Email: cf@qatarhelplinegroup.com

AL HAYIKI TRANSLATION & SERVICES EST.Authorized Translation & Certificate Attestation since 1992Sofitel Complex (Mercure Hotel) Ground Floor, Office No. 25Mob: 33411150 & 33411153, Tel: 44367755 & 44181990E-mail: hayiki4u@gmail.com Web: www.alhayikitranslation.com

QUEENS LAND SERVICESBusiness Set-up and Sponsorship. Debt Collection. Real Estate Services Mob: 77776917 E-mail: info@qlsqatar.com

INVEST IN QATAR

IMMIGRATION SERVICES

HELPLINE GROUPComplete Manpower SolutionsBusiness Structure and Business PlanningTel: (+974)-44271100 Mob: 77711129 Web: helplinehrconsulting.com

HR CONSULTATION

AL SALEH GROUP(HR)Tel: 44423838Send CV to Email: alsalehmanpower444@gmail.com

ARMSTRONGRepairs/Spare Parts & Rentals. Power from 5KVA to 2000KVA Sales/Services/ Spare Parts & Rentals. Annual Contracts.Mobile: 555 54 274 (Kumar) E-mail: secretary@armstrongmachinery.com www.armstrongmachinery.com

GENERATORS SERVICING

CLEANING AND MAINTENANCE

AL MUTWASSIT CLEANING & PEST CONTROLComplete General Cleaning For Residential & Commercial. Supply of Cleaning Staff on Contract Basis. Pest Control Services. Office: 44367555 Mob: 30029977/55875920 E-mail: info@amcqatar.co

AL SALEH CLEANING & HOSPITALITYComplete General Cleaning Services for Old & New Villas.Tel: 44423838 GSM: 55508393 - 55526943 - 50190005

CAPITAL CLEANING COMPANY W.L.L.Complete General Cleaning Services for Old and New VillasTel: 44582257 Mobile: 33189899/ 55565328E-mail: capitalcleaningwll@gmail.com

WOKEER INDUSTRIAL AREAFrom 150 - 200 LaborsMobile: 660 02 704 (Steve)E-mail: portacabins@iescoqatar.com

LABOUR CAMP FOR RENT

ARMSTRONG1000-4000 Gallon Tankers - Daily/Monthly/Yearly Contracts. Mobile: 660 41 449 (Neil)E-mail: portacabins6@iescoqatar.comwww.iescoqatar.com.

SEWAGE & WASTE REMOVAL

SCAFFOLDING

APOLLO ENTERPRISES SCAFFOLDING DIVISIONContract/Hire/Sale - Salwa Road. Tel: 44693334 Fax: 44416274 GSM: 55521089/55560246/55536285 www.apollo-qatar.net - E-mail: apolloscaff@qatar.net.qa

REAL ESTATE

AL MUFTAH SERVICESTel: 44634444/44010700 Mob: 55542067/55823100 E Mail: reservations@rentacardoha.com Website: www.rentacardoha.com

TRANSLATION

HELPLINE GROUPAuthorized Translation Centre.We speak more than 100 Languages. C Ring Road, Near by Toyota Signal Tel: (974)-44271100 Mob: 70114857 Email: info@helplinetranslation.com

PARTY KINGDOMNear Jaidah Flyover, Nasrallah Centre. Tel: 44353501/ 44366431

E-mail: partykingdom10doha@yahoo.com

PARTY ITEMS & BALLOON DECORATION

ARMSTRONGPorta Cabins/Pre-Fabricated Buildings/Toilets/Security Cabins. Fire Rated/Non Fire Rated. Mobile: 66041449 (Chris)E-mail: portacabins2@iescoqatar.com www.iescoqatar.com.

PORTA CABINS (Sales & Rentals)

ARMSTRONGFive Peals-USA Sales/Rental Service/Cleaning, Sewage Removal. Daily/Monthly/Yearly. Mobile: 66041449 (Chris)E-mail: portacabins2@iescoqatar.com www.iescoqatar.com.

PORTABLE & CHEMICAL TOILETS (Sales & Rentals)

MEDIA SERVICES

RENT A CAR

AL MUFTAH RENT A CARMain Office: D’ Ring Rd, T: 44634444/44010700 Branches: Airport: 44634433 Al Khor: 44113344 E Mail: reservations@rentacardoha.com Website: www.rentacardoha.com

OASIS RENT A CARYOU RENT MORE THAN A CAR WITH OASISAllen: 6641 7354 Tel: 4413 0011 - OasisCars.com Rental@OasisCars.Com - - Great deals on long term rentals

REGENCY FLEETS (A Regency Group Co.)Special Corporate leasing and Rental rates. Price includes Comprehensive Insurance, Maintenance, Replacement Vehicle etc. Driven by Values. E-mail: info@regencyfleets.com Tel: 44433822/44554046/44554048 Fax: 44554047 Airport Branch (24hrs): Tel.: 70482655

NATIONAL - ALAMO RENT A CARCars - 4WDs - Pickups - Buses - Chauffeur Drive Call: 5547 8150, 5040 0624 Web: www.national-qatar.comE-mail: info@national-qatar.com

BUDGET RENT A CARCompetitive Rates for Car Rental & Leasing, 24/7 Airport Rental Section,Free Road Side Assistance, Easy & Fast Booking ProcessHead Office: Barwa Village T: 44325500 M: 66971703 Toll Free: 800-4627Email: info@budgetqatar.com Website: www.budgetqatar.com

AL SALEH REAL ESTATETel: 44423838. Mob: 33721133 E-mail: abnaasalehgroup@gmail.com

HOME CARE

ARMSTRONGAblution & Event Toilets Rental, Porta Cabins, Chemical Toilets & Other Equipment Rental.Mobile : 66041449 (Chris) E-mail: portacabins2@iescoqatar.comwww.iescoqatar.com

EVENT RENTALS/ ABLUTIONTOILETS

MASSAGE

KOTTAKKAL AYURVEDIC MASSAGE CENTREAyurvedic Massage, Philippine & Thai Massage. Near Badriya Signal, Bin Mehmood. Tel.: 44360061 GSM: 33453697

MEDIHERB MASSAGEKerala Ayurvedic, Thai, Philippine Massage (Gents & Ladies) for back pain, body pain, arthritis etc shirodhara, steam, Moroccan Bathe, Body Scrub etc. E-Ring Road,

Near ICC Signal, Nuaija. Tel: 66167700 - 50736611

AUTHENTIC THAI MASSAGE CENTERSFB: Royal Thai Men Spa, New Slata (Men Only)www.thaimassagedoha.com, Tel: 44666145FB: Royal Thai Lady Spa, Al Waab (Ladies Only)www.royalthailadyspa.com, Tel: 44142400

WATER TANK CLEANING

AL MUTWASSIT CLEANING & PEST CONTROLKharaba st, Behind white Mosque. Fax: 443679 99 - GSM. 55875920/55860432

CAPITAL CLEANING COMPANYCleaning Water Tanks & Pest Control. GSM: 55565328/ 33189899 Tel: 44582257 E-mail: capitalcleaningwll@gmail.com

WOKEER INDUSTRIAL AREAAvailable Sizes: 358/415/510/830/1340 Sqm.Mobile: 660 02 704 (Steve)E-mail: portacabins@iescoqatar.com

WAREHOUSE FOR RENT

ARMSTRONGNew & Used Containers - Sales/Rental (Certified & Uncertified) Mobile: 557 80 396 (Steve)E-mail: portacabins2@iescoqatar.com www.iescoqatar.com.

USED CONTAINERS (Sales & Rentals)