Covid, the latest news today from Italy and the world | Beijing risks closing like Shanghai

• latest bulletin, For Sunday, April 24th56,263 new infections and 79 deaths were recorded in our country.
• In Israel, indoor masks are no longer mandatory except in three cases: hospitals, nursing homes, and flights.
• Spike in cases A Beijingwhich is now at risk of closure like shanghai.

11:39 a.m. – In India, new positives double in one week

Covid-19 cases have nearly doubled in a week in India, where at least 12 states have seen an alarming growth in positives. According to the Times of India, in the week of April 18-24, the country counted 15,700 new positive cases, an increase of 95% compared to the previous week, when there were 8,050 cases. In the past 24 hours, the new positives were 2,541, with the largest number of cases in New Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.

11:39 – China: We will not give up and stop the progress of Omicron

China ensures it will not slacken in the fight against Covid-19, impeding the progress of the Omicron variant: Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin, responding to a question about fears of a closure in Beijing similar to that harsh in Shanghai, said he replied that in the face of the Omicron variant, it would not China surrenders, but will advance in the war to prevent Omicron. Acknowledging the impact on the economy, Wang referred to the government’s anti-epidemic efforts, noting that China had already achieved remarkable results with the delta variable. We will definitely win and make more contributions to the world.

10:34 am – Beijing’s first lockdowns: Another Shanghai feared

(Guido Santeviche) The Beijing Health Commission says the situation is bleak. The 47 cases of COVID-19 that emerged on Friday were enough to alarm the authorities and people of the Chinese capital, who fear they may end up in the same siege imposed on Shanghai four weeks ago. Currently, the epicenter of the outbreak in Beijing is Chaoyang District, where offices, embassies and luxury shopping centers are concentrated, which attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors every day (so, even if the majority of cases are detected in Chaoyang, more positives are likely to come from other neighborhoods).

Authorities say infections have been circulating for at least a week. Cai Zhi, the capital’s powerful party secretary, said the precautionary measures could not wait even a day. Since the beginning of the crisis, in 2020, Xi Jinping has declared that Beijing must be defended at all costs (a question of international prestige and internal credibility of the Communist General Secretary who often signaled to the masses the chaos and lockdowns in the country. Capitals of the “West). Anti-health strategy Is the usual: 3.5 million Chaoyang residents were prescribed three tampons in six days to be able to enter the office or leave the house. On the streets, experimental tents have been erected in front of skyscrapers and people lined up in order. It seems inevitable that other cases will emerge with the carpet tests and take off The circle of aggressive tracking of contacts and movements of the infected, which leads to the expansion of actions.

Here is the full article.

09:48 – Beijing, long queues in supermarkets and for mass testing

Fears of the imminent closure of the Covid-19 wave have sparked shopping in Beijing, which has led to the emergence of long queues both in supermarkets and in front of temporary centers for mass testing decided by health authorities yesterday and concentrated in Chaoyang, central China. capital. On the day Shanghai, which has been almost completely under lockdown for weeks, reported 51 new deaths on Sunday, Beijing updated the number of infections with 14 more, bringing the total to 55 in the count as of April 22, preparing for the worst after it had been for a while. A week, the virus escaped detection.

09:46 – The green corridor and masks, the new decree from May 1

(Monica Gorzoni and Fiorenza Sarzanini) Masks are mandatory in public offices, on transport and in places of entertainment. This is the direction of the government, which will meet in the control room on Wednesday or Thursday to ratify the new decree effective from May 1. The Green Corridor has been confirmed abolition, with the exception of health facilities only.

In public offices, the surgical mask will be maintained while in the private sector, the trend is to leave the choice to companies. The protection obligation could extend to shops as well. In places of entertainment – cinemas, theaters, concert halls, as well as discos – a mask is still mandatory, but it is possible that it is an operation. The same rule applies to gyms. Distancing rules should be enough instead to prompt the government to scrap the obligation in bars and restaurants.

From May 1, the Green Certificate remains to prove vaccination or recovery but it will not be necessary to enter workplaces and public places. The only exception is health professions, hospital workers and RSAs whose work suspensions for those who haven’t been vaccinated, continue through December 31.

The full article with the new rules is here.

09:22 – Stocks in sharp decline and the impact of Covid in China: Milan -1.59%, crash in Asia

(Marco Sabella) Clouds are gathering again on world price lists. The Milan Stock Exchange started the week sharply lower, in line with other European markets. The Ftse Mib Index lost 1.59% in early trading to 23,887 points. The start of a sharp decline also for European stock exchanges, which are ignoring concerns about the spread of Covid in China and its impact on global growth in a context of uncertainty and already great anxiety due to accelerating inflation, monetary tightening and war. in Ukraine. Paris initially lost 1.98% despite Emmanuel Macron’s victory in the French presidential election, and Frankfurt and London slipped 1.65%.

The first session of the week ended in dark red for Asian bourses as well, with concerns about growth linked to China’s anti-Covid strategy. The new campaign has led Chinese authorities to order new mass testing and lock down some areas of the capital. Over the weekend, Shanghai set a death record as Beijing authorities warned that the virus was spreading quietly and imposed mass testing in an area of ​​the capital. At the end of the session, Hong Kong lost 3.3%, Shanghai 3.6% and Shenzhen 5%. Tokyo (-1.8%) and Seoul (-1.5%) also fell sharply, while Sydney was closed for holidays. Investors are concerned that the spread of Covid and China’s response could affect the growth of the Asian giant and create new disruptions in the global supply chain.

Here is the full article.

09:12 – Vaccine, 136609792 doses given so far in Italy

136,609,792 doses of vaccine against Covid-19 have been administered so far in Italy, 96.3 percent of those delivered equivalent to 141,900,434 of which 95,340,675 Pfizer/BioNTech, 25,446,682 Moderna, 11,514,521 Vaxzevria, 6726,091 Pfizer Pediatrics, 1,849.09 What emerges from the bulletin on the progress of the vaccination campaign in Italy by the Prime Minister, the Ministry of Health and the Vaccination Completion Unit updated at 06:15 today.

08:48 – Israel, no more inner masks

For the first time in two years, indoor masks are no longer mandatory in Israel, with some exceptions. As announced in recent days by Prime Minister, Naftali Bennett, and Health Minister, Nitzan Horowitz, the article went into effect last night on the basis of the significant decrease in Covid infections in the country. According to the ministry’s data, on Saturday there were 4054 cases: the lowest number in 4 months and even serious cases in hospitals decreased to 221. The R factor to 0.78. Exceptions to the obligation to wear masks indoors relate to hospitals, seniors’ homes, and flights. There is also still the buffer for travelers upon arrival at Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport, with quarantined until the negative evaluation result.

08:41 – Alert in Beijing, risks of lockdown like Shanghai

Alert in Beijing for the rise in cases of coronavirus, with a general screening campaign and residents stocking food in case of closure. The city appears to fear a Shanghai-style scenario, where nearly 25 million residents have been detained since the beginning of April, often with difficulties obtaining food. On Monday, the Ministry of Health reported 29 new cases of coronavirus in Beijing, bringing the total to dozens from last week. 51 deaths were reported in the past 24 hours, a record number of cases per day. Since March, China has been facing a wave of the epidemic that has affected almost the entire country of varying degrees, and is trying to overcome it with the zero-Covid strategy. The strategy consists of topical containment as soon as a few cases emerge and massive testing to quickly identify and isolate infected people. In Beijing, on Monday morning, long queues, sometimes hundreds of people, wandered between sidewalks and shopping malls, to get to the testing booths, manned by officers in full protective suits. And the municipal authorities warned, yesterday, that the situation is dangerous and difficult and that urgent measures are needed to stop the spread of the virus quickly.