Madrid, Mar 26: More than three billion people around the world were living under lockdown on Wednesday as governments stepped up their efforts against the coronavirus pandemic which has left more than 20,000 people dead.
As the number of confirmed cases worldwide soared past 450,000, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned that only a concerted global effort could stop the spread of the virus.
In Spain, the number of fatalities surpassed those of China, where the novel coronavirus first emerged three months ago, making it the hardest-hit nation after Italy.
A total of more than 20,800 deaths have now been reported in 182 countries and territories, according to an AFP tally.
Stock markets rebounded after the US Congress moved closer to passing a $2.2 trillion relief package to prop up a teetering US economy.
In Washington, President Donald Trump said New York, the epicenter of the US outbreak with over 30,000 cases, likely has a few "tough weeks" ahead but he would decide soon whether unaffected parts of the country can get back to work.
"We want to get our country going again," Trump said. "I'm not going to do anything rash or hastily.
"By Easter we'll have a recommendation and maybe before Easter," said Trump, who had been touting a strong US economy as he faces an election in November.
UN chief Guterres said the world needs to ban together to stem the pandemic.
"COVID-19 is threatening the whole of humanity -- and the whole of humanity must fight back," Guterres said, launching an appeal for $2 billion to help the world's poor.
"Global action and solidarity are crucial," he said. "Individual country responses are not going to be enough."
India's stay-at-home order for its 1.3 billion people is now the biggest, taking the total number of individuals facing restrictions on their daily lives to more than three billion.
Anxious Indians raced for supplies after the world's second-biggest population was ordered not to leave their houses for three weeks.
Russia, which announced the death of two patients who tested positive for coronavirus on Wednesday, is expected to follow suit.
President Vladimir Putin declared next week a public holiday and postponed a public vote on controversial constitutional reforms, urging people to follow instructions given by authorities.
In Britain, heir to the throne Prince Charles became the latest high-profile figure to be infected, though he has suffered only mild symptoms.
The G20 major economies will hold an emergency videoconference on Thursday to discuss a global response to the crisis, as will the 27 leaders of the European Union, the outbreak's new epicenter.
China has begun to relax its own draconian restrictions on free movement in the province of Hubei -- where the outbreak began in December -- after the country reported no new cases.
Crowds jammed trains and buses in the province as people took their first opportunity to travel.
But Spain saw the number of deaths surge to more than 3,400 after 738 people died in the past 24 hours and the government announced a 432-million-euro ($467 million) deal to buy medical supplies from Beijing.
The death toll in Italy jumped in 24 hours by 683 to 7,503 -- by far the highest of any country.
The number of French deaths was up by 231 on Wednesday to more than 1,330, and metro and rail services in Paris were cut to a minimum.
Spain and Italy were joined by France and six more EU countries in urging Germany and the Netherlands to allow the issue of joint European bonds to cut borrowing costs and stabilise the eurozone economy.
The call is likely to fall on deaf ears when EU leaders talk on Thursday -- with northern members wary of pooling debt with big spenders -- but they will sign off on an "unprecedented" recovery plan.
At La Paz University Hospital in Madrid, nurse Guillen del Barrio sounded bereft as he related what happened overnight.
"It is really hard, we had feverish people for many hours in the waiting room," the 30-year-old told AFP.
"Many of my colleagues were crying because there were people who are dying alone, without seeing their family for the last time."
Coronavirus cases are also spreading in the Middle East, where Iran's death toll topped 2,000, and in Africa, where Mali declared its first case and several nations announced states of emergency.
In Japan, which has postponed this year's Olympic Games, Tokyo's governor urged residents to stay home this weekend, warning of a possible "explosion" of the coronavirus.
Jerusalem's Church of the Holy Sepulchre, believed by Christians to house Christ's tomb, was shut as Israel tightened movement restrictions.
The impact of the pandemic is also hitting European football, with leagues and tournaments cancelled, while the fate of the Wimbledon tennis tournament could be decided next week.
The economic damage of the virus -- and the lockdowns -- could also be devastating, with fears of a worldwide recession worse than the financial meltdown more than a decade ago.
But financial markets rose after US leaders reached agreement on a stimulus package worth roughly 10 percent of the US economy, an injection Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said represented a "wartime level of investment."
Meanwhile, more than half of all Americans have been told to stay at home, including residents of the largest state, California.
The United States has at least 65,700 cases and 942 people have died.
The book written by one of the founders of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh in 1946 is now being re-issued by a Mumbai-based right-wing trust.
Comments
I'm a Christian Anglo-Saxon, and I find the idea of this book to be wonderful. For me, it is beautiful to envision Jesus kneeling down to worship Lord Shiva. It is not disrespectful to Jesus at all to believe this - it shows that he was a reverent and faithful believer. As a Christian, I can understand why the people who wrote the Bible might have wanted to cover up certain aspects of Jesus's life. I love the idea of Jesus and his followers uniting with the Indian people in a shared religious heritage.
its not fully acceptable but some of them are true in that book
To increase bjp vote banks they are trying to include Christians under their belt. Like they says jains, , buddist and sikhs are the part of Hindu religion. Which is totally wrong. No jains , budhist, Sikhs, worships Hindu gods.
Writer used to write stories for ram gopal verma. After the flop of RGV sholay remake version of Aag, writer lost his job and published books on jesus to earn money for his livelihood.
thank god he dint say bible was written by waalmiki.
If Savarkar's brother's thinking was so skewed, just imagine how skewed was Savarkar's thinking??? Bade mian tho bade mian, chotay mian subhanallah!!
Dear BABARAO
Kindly give your Script to Sanjay Lila Bansali (SLB).so that he can Make a Comedy Film base on your Script.We will recommend SLB to introduce Subramania Swami as the HERO of this Movie.
Stop playing with the feeling of Christian And Muslim Who respect Jesus Christ.It wont suite for your (RSS) Stupid Idiology.I thought some one will be there among you will certain amount of So called Common sense But where ???? All Same.
GROW UP DUDE
Yes, this is correct. Everyone in the world are Hindus as Hinduis is the only true religion. All the countries around the world were ruled by Hindu kings. white house was vishnu temple, israel knesste was Ram Mandir, Vatican was sita mandir, Bejing was capital of Shiva, tokyo was rest room of Lakshmi, Australia was ruled over by vishnu, Africa was governed by Krishna. Veer Sarkar fore father was ambassador of all the gods and he was travelling in the air without plane.
Really it was good joke... cant stop laughing...he should be awarded with Nobel Prize.... God Bless him ...
Bullet train 2000 KMH
Please don't release that book and cause one more imbalance in the community.Tired of seeing killing people in the name of 'GOD' - GOD is just a Invisible Power, nothing else other than this ,we have given him different forms and name and to relieve our mind from stress and to share thoughts n desire we created a god.Once you purge something from mind you will feel relieved.
#NoWarKnowPeace
we are in the Lent season only i can say is
\Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing\""
all the jokes in book is good and the best one is Jesus was Tamilian and his complexion was dark.....OHH brothers jesus was very fair and lovely prophet of islam.
why all chaddi leaders at last becomes mad ?
ha......ha....
Tomorrow he will say Washington was a hindu land and White house was Shiva temple.....and Obama was a Tamil Brahmin....
Please book a seat for him in Kankanady..........ha...ha...
Whatever, ultimately he proved that Brahmins were Non veg eaters, especially beef & pork. And even they can consume alcohol.
Now Subramanya swamy may link his family tree to Jesus christ.
BED TIME STORIES......
loughing of the day from RSS yeak yeak yeak
The RSS creatures spreading their wings to the community of Christians and provoking them. These unknown writers RSS have free time for frictions and fabricate. Earlier they were targeting Tajmahal as Tej Mahal, built by RSS king Tej singh. Kutub Minar built by their RSS king Shaktisena so on. And they are spreading romours that the black stone at Haram, Makkah, as Shiva Linga etc.
They have plans to rewrite the history of India for their needs, in many schools run by them are teaching hate history of India, that's the reason they are in collusion with HRD ministry do innovations.
Damm it RSS.
HAA HAA HAA HAA HAA HAA HAA HAA HAA HAA HAA HAA HAA........
Help I can't stop, I think i will go to hospital, My stomach is getting pain.
HAA HAA HAA............................................HAA HAA
This book is the ultimate proof irreparable idiocy/ stupidity of RSS.
Secondly, how the publishers and printers printed it ?
This community will never improve nor succeed, they continue battling until their stupid community remain at large.
We all respect many Hindus, most of them are indeed good.
but this disproportionate venomous creatures spoiling names of good Hindus.
Indeed Hinduism has become a culture, not a religion.
Jusus Peace be upon him was Jewish, he was born in Palestine,
He has no relation whatsoever with man made religion the Hinduism. He was not Tamil, nor Brahmin,
He was miraculously born without father to his mother the Maryam may God be pleased with all of these. He was against wrong belief of plural God. Hinduism has highest number of Gods than its followers. Where as worshipping plural God is totally against true religions of God like Islam and Christianity.
bm3qd
Jesus is one of the mightiest Prophets sent by ALLAH to the face of the earth. If any Muslim does not believe in Jesus pbuh then he is not a MUSLIM.
QURAN explain on all prophetS of God:
Say (O Muslim) \We believe in ALLAH and that which has been sent down to us and that which has been sent down to Abraham, Ismail, Ishaque, Jacob, and to Al-Asbat and that which has been given to Moses and JESUS and that which has been given to the prophets from their LORD. We make no DISTINCTION between any of them and to him we have Submitted (in ISLAM) (Quran - chapter 2 : 136)
The devils which is also a creation of ALLAH will try to claim thru LIES and DECEPTION... But ALLAH says never fear the devils and seek help from HIM. Devils are smart in LIES and Cheddis are following his agenda. which will take them together to HELL which will be eternal...
Those who support such ideology of destruction should learn about ALLAH and his creation the Shaitan from the jinns who has been FOOLING people who are far from the TRUTH>"
RSS PLEASE GIVE US BASE FOR HINDU RELIGION .,...
Hahahaha...many more things to come till Modi in throne, my dear christian brothers don't get exited. All nuts and bolts of sanghis are removed...HAHHAHHAAH
Hellow Christian bhai Wake up and Answer them...........................
how u came to know now. good u came from rss university?
Jesus is not a GOD not Hindu but He is Messenger of Allah
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