Corona: In his book, the French journalist Antoine Izambard uncovers the methods of the Chinese government in a laboratory. The debate, in particular, continues to heat up Donald Trump.
- French journalist Antoine Izambard describes the lack of transparency in China in his book .
- France helped China set up the research laboratories , but then the Chinese cut themselves off.
- China should therefore only look for the know-how, but leaves its partners in the dark about its intentions .
- The coronavirus * is also spreading in other countries .
Update, May 6, 10:15 am: In the corona crisis , an emergency call comes from Brazil to Germany : The capital of the state of Amazonas, Manaus, asked Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) and 20 other heads of state and government for urgent help. Only with medical and financial support from the global community could "save the lives of those who protect the rainforest," Mayor Arthur Virgilio said in a video message.
His cry for help directed Virgilio among others to US President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron . He had previously asked the Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg * for support.
In the state of Amazonas , 649 people have died as a result of the coronavirus, officials said. The indigenous people in the area are particularly vulnerable. The only 50 intensive care beds in the city of Manaus , which has a population of 1.7 million, have been occupied for weeks. Mass graves have already been laid out in cemeteries.
In Brazil , the number of corona deaths rose to more than 7,900. The number of people infected is almost 115,000. Three cities in the northeast of the country announced contact closures this week : Belém, São Luis and Fortaleza.
Corona: Global race for vaccine - EU diplomat has dark foreboding: "Brutal nationalism"
Update of May 5, 8:49 pm: 7.5 billion euros, mainly for the development of vaccines and medicines against the coronavirus . Angela Merkel and other heads of state and government recently backed this call for donations from the EU Commission .
The explicit emphasis here: it can only be done together. A possible vaccine should become a “global, public good”, as Angela Merkel made clear. But does the distribution of a vaccine end in a global mess?
Opposite bild.de (Article after payment barrier) an unnamed EU Diplomant speaks of exactly this scenario and fears a "brutal nationalism in health care." How might this situation? According to reports, three scenarios seem possible.
The country in which a vaccine is first approved seems to be decisive. Six vaccines are currently in clinical trial - two in China, two in the United States, two in Europe (one in Germany, one in the UK).
- Scenario 1 - First registration in the USA: In the EU there are fears that the USA and Trump will claim the drug for themselves. CDU MEP Peter Liese (54) believes that US President Trump will act according to the "America first" principle. In this case, the EU needs "a plan B" in addition to dialogue.
- Scenario 2 - First registration in China: In this case too, the vaccine is expected to be used by itself, as Liese explains: "If China is ahead of the competition for the first vaccine, there is unfortunately to be fear that they will be ahead of the times use their own interests instead of making them globally available, as would be the case given the origin of the pandemic. "
- Scenario 3 - First registration in Europe: It seems crucial here whether the German researchers in Mainz * or the British researchers in Oxford are initially successful. While it is not said that the British would claim a vaccine, time could be a problem. The decisive phase of vaccine approval is likely to be the end of the Brexit * transition period.
Corona worldwide: life-threatening prospects for millions in Africa
Update of May 5, 4:20 pm: According to the UN, the corona pandemic threatens to intensify the hunger crisis in West Africa considerably. Without outside help, the number of hungry people in the region could double to 43 million people in the next six months, warned Elisabeth Byrs , spokeswoman for the World Food Program (WFP) on Tuesday in Geneva. This would also affect millions of children under the age of five.
In addition to the respiratory disease Covid-19, the spokeswoman said that terrorism, violence, conflict and global warming are also endangering the population in the region. The need is particularly bad in Benin, Cameroon, Nigeria, the Central African Republic and Sahel states like Burkina Faso . Many people would not have had enough to eat before the corona pandemic broke out.
The UN warns that the corona pandemic will exacerbate the hunger crisis in Africa. (Icon image)
© dpa
Because of the corona pandemic, West African countries also had restrictions on transportation and border closures, according to the WFP. This hinders the delivery of food and other goods. The coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 spreads according to the UN in Africa quickly. Due to a considerable lack of test facilities , it is almost impossible to realistically describe the situation.
In the event of a corona lockdown , a study found that more than half of Africans would also run out of money . In addition, 70 percent of respondents said that food and water supplies would be a problem if they had to stay at home for 14 days, according to a study published on Tuesday by the World Health Organization (WHO), the Ipsos market research institute, the Africa CDC and the Africa CDC, among others Organizations showed.
Meanwhile, the US may have made a breakthrough. A test for early detection of the virus is said to be "absolutely a game changer".
Update of May 5, 12 noon: As reported by ntv.de , India is scheduled to begin on Thursday to bring back hundreds of thousands of workers and students stranded abroad. A spokesman for the Ministry of Defense said three naval vessels were on their way to the Maldives and the United Arab Emirates . Aircraft are also to be used in the return campaign.
India imposed a strict curfew in March, and all flights from abroad were considered illegal. A return was therefore prevented from hundreds of thousands of Indian workers and students abroad.
Update from May 4, 6 p.m .: Stranded in paradise: Due to the corona pandemic, numerous festival visitors to Tribal Gathering sometimes stayed on the dream beach in Panama * for weeks , before they went home after curfew, quarantine and tough back and forth Could take flights.
Update of May 4, 4:50 pm: The Mexican authorities had to significantly increase the official number of corona infections * in the country.
Previously, 23,471 cases were expected in the Central American country, but now, according to the government, an epidemiological calculation model of 128,033 infections can be assumed.
Coronavirus in Mexico: authorities correct case numbers - 128,000 infections registered
According to Health Secretary Hugo Lopez-Gatell, the method used is "efficient because it takes into account the fact that in reality not all smaller cases are documented", adding that it would be a wrong assumption to "pretend that you can." Record illness directly ”.
The so-called Centinela monitoring system has been in use in Mexico since 2006, relying on reliable data from a selected network of facilities and not only on reports of deaths and hospital stays that do not record the outpatient cases .
The pandemic is expected to peak on Wednesday , health officials say. Some hospitals in the capital Mexico City are already reaching their capacity limits. Nationwide restrictions currently apply until May 30. 2100 patients died from the consequences of a corona infection *.
Update from May 4, 2:55 p.m .: After 22 nurses and doctors were infected with the coronavirus *, a newly built clinic in Bangladesh's capital Dhaka has to close. All staff at the St. John Vianney Catholic Hospital are now in quarantine, the Asian press agency Ucanews reported on Monday.
Coronavirus in Bangladesh: newly opened clinic has to close - 22 employees infected
The clinic , financed by the Archdiocese of Dhaka and belonging to the Rosary community in the Tejgaon district, only opened in November . The church is the oldest Catholic-Christian church, the congregation is the largest in the country with 15,000 members. Pope Francis paid a visit to the important church in 2017.
The Asian country, which is one of the poorest in the world, has little financial resources to test on a large scale. So far, 10,143 people with coronavirus infection have been registered in Bangladesh by Monday (May 4) , 182 people died of the disease Covid-19. Hospital employees are particularly affected with 12 percent of infections. The lockdown was recently extended until May 16, but the reopening of the textile factories on April 26 also extended beyond Bangladesh. for criticism. Bangladesh is the world's second largest textile producer after China.
Coronavirus in Brazil: More than 100,000 infections - Bolsonaro trivializes virus
Update of May 4, 7:34: The coronavirus is spreading more and more in South America. According to official information, more than 100,000 people in Brazil have now tested positive for the virus. As the Ministry of Health in Brasília announced on Sunday, the number of corona infected was 10.1147. At least 7025 people have died in connection with the virus so far.
According to data from Johns Hopkins University in the United States, Brazil is now the ninth most affected country in the world, according to official figures. The undisclosed number of infected people is likely to be much higher due to the lack of tests and laboratory results that have not yet been evaluated. However, Brazil is the most populous country in Latin America with more than 200 million inhabitants.
On February 26, a human had been tested positive for the virus in the region for the first time in Brazil. Given the increasing number of infections and mismanagement, hospitals and cemeteries in various cities and states have now reached their limits, and the system has collapsed.
President Jair Bolsonaro downplayed the corona virus, disliked public restrictions, and called for a return to normal . In the dispute over the handling with the virus he dismissed Health Minister Luiz Henrique Mandetta , who represented a strict line. Bolsonaro repeatedly disregards the distance recommendations itself.
Coronavirus in Thailand - first easing takes effect
Update from May 3, 3:02 pm: As a result of the relaxation of some Corona requirements, restaurants, markets, parks, sports clubs and some shops have reopened in Thailand on Sunday. At the same time, the government warned of negligence. "There are no government measures that say you should be careless," said Army Supreme Commander General Pornpipat Benyasri on Sunday.
Explosive report by the secret services: China has covered up the Corona outbreak and lied to the whole world
Update of May 3, 11:54 a.m .: China tried to cover up the Corona outbreak and lied to the whole world. These massive allegations are based on a document from leading intelligence agencies that exposed the Chinese government's cover-up tactics.
Update at 10:56 p.m .: The Islamic-conservative Kingdom of Saudi Arabia wants to take "severe and painful" measures to plug billions of dollars in budgetary gaps as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
The finance minister of the world's largest oil exporter, Mohammed al-Jadan, announced this in an interview on Saturday with the television station Al-Arabiya. “All options are open. We have to cut spending in the budget, ”he said.
A few days ago, his ministry announced that $ 9 billion was missing from the budget due to lower oil prices and the corona crisis . In Saudi Arabia strict restrictions due to the pandemic. Among other things, pilgrimages to the holy sites of Islam and international flight connections are suspended.
The government has already announced a package of measures to boost the economy. For years she has been trying to reduce the country's great dependence on oil exports.
Coronavirus in Tanzania: Opposition goes into isolation - three corona deaths in the government?
Update at 10:36 pm: The opposition in the Tanzanian parliament remains away from the meetings for the time being after three MPs may have died of lung disease Covid-19 . Justice Minister Augustine Mahiga was among the fatalities . Chadema MPs now want to isolate themselves at home for 14 days, as announced on Saturday.
Party leader Freeman Mbowe had previously called on parliament to stay away and to cancel all meetings until further notice to prevent the spread of the corona virus.
It was not officially confirmed whether the three politicians Mahiga , Gertrude Rwakatare and Richard Ndassa actually died from Covid-19 . The circumstances of their burials under strict hygiene protection suggest this, as the opposition believes.
So far, 480 coronavirus infections and 16 deaths have been counted in the East African state on the Indian Ocean with its 56 million inhabitants . According to critics, President John Magufuli reacted rather hesitantly to the crisis.
Corona virus worldwide: 10,000 prisoners released in the Philippines
Update 18:24: The Philippine judiciary has released since mid-March, nearly 10,000 prisoners from the overcrowded prisons of the country to further spread of the coronavirus curb.
Members of a youth group walk down a street in Star Wars costumes. The youth group runs through the streets to entertain the residents while reminding them to stay home to curb the corona pandemic.
© dpa / Aaron Favila
In order to facilitate the early release, procedural rules have been specially adapted, said judge Mario Victor Leonen of the Supreme Court of the Asian state with its more than 7,000 islands on Saturday. According to official information, two prisoners have died of lung disease Covid-19 so far , 350 have been tested positive for the virus.
However, the New York-based human rights organization Human Rights Watch warned that the government under President Rodrigo Duterte did not disclose the true extent and there was a large number of unreported cases.
"The government should take the terrible situation in its prisons seriously and report the deaths and infections in the prisons correctly," said Phil Robertson, vice director of Human Rights Watch. Nationwide, the Ministry of Health has recorded nearly 9,000 infections and 603 deaths from the corona virus.
Update of May 2, 9:46 am: US President Donald Trump has accused China of being responsible for the virus outbreak. He had evidence that the virus had broken out in a laboratory in Wuhan, China. The German SPD politician and epidemiologist Karl Lauterbach sees no connection here and expresses his concerns about Trump's theory in an interview with focus.de.
Coronavirus in China: Lauterbach suspects diversionary maneuvers behind Trump's allegations
Lauterbach holds Trumps allegations of questionable and refers to studies that have investigated the case. He also has a plausible explanation ready. His conclusion: “It is very unlikely and it doesn't make sense to me. I rather see a diversion from Trump's internal difficulties. “The expert, who has lived in America for several years, points out that Trump's approach to the pandemic endangers the population and the economy . This is now considered uncontroversial in the United States.
As a keen critic of easing too quickly in Germany, he also shows that the "too loose" course of the plague on the part of Trump, whose new spokeswoman committed her first breach of trust, is causing massive problems in the economy. "I believe that the Americans still have the biggest problem budget ahead of them." He predicts that the Americans will experience an even more severe economic relapse in the autumn than was feared. "Trump prevents this by looking for scapegoats and this includes the laboratories in China," said Lauterbach.
A crew member of a Tui cruise ship in Cuxhaven tested positive for the corona virus.
Corona virus in China: Trump threatens punitive tariffs for alleged virus outbreak in Wuhan
Update of May 1, 10:05 a.m .: In the face of the corona crisis in the United States, President Donald Trump has commented on the allegations towards China and raised new allegations. Trump said he saw evidence of a connection between the virus outbreak * and a laboratory in Wuhan, China. He subsequently threatened China with punitive tariffs.
Corona virus in China: Trump wants evidence of virus origins in Wuhan
At a press conference in the White House , a journalist asked Trump whether he had any evidence that the Virological Institute in Wuhan was the source of the pandemic. The President * answered in the affirmative. "Yes, I have," said Trump , who answered all further questions, unable to provide any further details.
REPORTER: "Have you seen anything at this point that gives you a high degree of confidence that the Wuhan Institute of Virology was the origin of this virus?"
PRESIDENT TRUMP: "Yes, I have. Yes, I have."
"The @WHO should be ashamed of themselves." pic.twitter.com/O05NlzqV4T
Trump wants to impose “punitive tariffs” on China, as he already did in the trade conflict with Beijing. As previously reported (April 30 update, 6:42 p.m.), U.S. intelligence agencies attempted to counter speculation that the human coronavirus * may have been created.
US intelligence coordinator Richard Grenell said Thursday that US services agree with science and that the virus is “ not human-made or genetically modified”. However, it was not excluded that an accident caused the origin.
Coronavirus in China: Trump's critics see blame only as a distraction
President Trump has repeatedly attacked China sharply since the corona virus outbreak *, calling the virus "Chinese virus" , for example , and claims for compensation from Beijing are not excluded. A number of other countries also require China to be more transparent about the origins of the virus *. Skeptics have been targeting the Wuhan Institute of Virology , home to the largest virus bank in Asia , in recent weeks . The Chinese authorities firmly reject theories about a man-made virus. Trump's critics accuse the government of using blame to distract from its failings to fight the pandemic. So far, most people in the United States have died from the consequences of the coronavirus *, and more than 63,000 Covid-19 patients succumbed to their illness.
Sweden, however, is going its own way in the Corona crisis. After much criticism, it is now surprising that Sweden received praise for the Corona course from the WHO directorate. *
Corona virus in China: sights open slowly - two weeks no corona death
Update of May 1, 8:45 a.m . : More than three months ago, the lockdown for China's tourist attractions began to reduce the spread of coronavirus *. The Imperial Palace in Beijing and the Great Wall reopened after they closed. Tickets now have to be purchased online, and the number of visitors has also been severely limited . Parks and museums also open their doors on Friday.
The Imperial Palace, known as the “Forbidden City”, only allows 5000 visitors a day, before the pandemic 80,000 were allowed. And urban parks also curb visitor numbers, because only 30 percent of the usual number of visitors is now permitted.
Much else has changed. Now fever is measured at the entrances, visitors have to wear a face mask and show a green code on an app widely used in China to show that they have had no contact with infected people and are not sick themselves. The minimum distance must also be observed for the attractions. But even with the additional requirements, the opening is a positive sign that China has the situation largely under control.
The Chinese Health Commission said on Friday that there were only twelve new infections nationwide , six of which were found in Chinese people returning home. No death has been reported in over two weeks . Officially, 4,633 people in China have already died from the corona virus * . Currently, only 599 patients are to be treated in hospitals.
Corona virus worldwide: death toll rises to over 230,000 - one million recovered
8:59 p.m .: Pleasing news in the corona statistics . According to figures from the Johns Hopkins University , there are now more than one million people worldwide who have overcome the coronavirus and are included in the statistics as so-called recovered people.
World have 3,244,022 people with the coronavirus infected , 230,615 are from the effects of Covid-19 died and a total of 1,005,832 have the illness defeated ( as at 30 April, 20:55 ).
19:09: The Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin is, according to the state media with the coronavirus infected. The 54-year-old is therefore in quarantine, Russian agencies reported on Thursday evening. Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin expressed hope of a speedy recovery of the prime minister.
Coronavirus from China's laboratory? Journalist with depressing details from Wuhan - US intelligence agency comments
18:42: The US intelligence investigate whether the coronavirus pandemic in China has begun through human contact with infected animals or from an accident in a research laboratory. All of the relevant findings would be "thoroughly checked," the office of the US intelligence coordinator said on Thursday. However, like most scientists, the secret services assumed that the novel corona virus was a natural and not man-made or manipulated pathogen, it said.
In the US , there has recently been repeated speculation that the Sars-CoV-2 virus was accidentally released by a laboratory worker in Wuhan. In the metropolis of millions, the pandemic had started shortly before the turn of the year. According to media reports, US President Donald Trump is said to have asked the secret services for a meticulous investigation of the laboratory accident theory. However, most scientists assume that the pathogen in China jumped from infected animals to humans and then spread quickly.
Update of April 30, 4:55 p.m .: In Southeast Asia, the situation in many countries is confusing when it comes to corona containment . But there is now news from Thailand that points to a positive development. Due to the falling number of new infections, some restrictions will be relaxed as of next Sunday. Markets, some shops and restaurants, hairdressers and parks are allowed to reopen across the country. Shopping centers should remain closed.
Corona: Thailand with first easing - shops, restaurants and hairdressers open
However, two important rules will continue to apply in the Kingdom: the ban on alcohol sales and the curfew at night will initially continue to be enforced. Government officials Taweesin Visanuyothin announced further easing on Thursday. However, the number of infections in Thailand should not continue to rise.
For the fourth day in a row, fewer than ten daily new infections with the coronavirus * had been reported. For comparison: in March more than 100 new cases were registered every day. According to the authorities, 2954 people were tested positive for the Sars-CoV-2 pathogen. According to the government, 54 people died as a result of the infection. The state of emergency continues until May 31st, furthermore hygiene requirements and distance rules apply to the areas affected by the relaxation.
Coronavirus from China's laboratory? Journalist with depressing details from Wuhan
First report from April 30th:
Paris - French journalist Antoine Izambard describes Sino-French relations in his book, questioning the methods used by the Chinese government. The author visited Wuhan and confirms China's lack of transparency with his experience report, increasing skepticism about the role of world power in the pandemic.
Corona: China's dubious role in the pandemic - French expertise helped world power
In February Izambard was at the Chinese Corona * epicenter Wuhan to get an impression of the high-tech research laboratory that is affiliated with the Institute of Virology. In his book "The Dangerous Liaisons", Izambard deals with the relationship between China and France, since the Europeans have been helping with research into infections since the 2003 Sars pandemic . However , the work of the research institutes is obviously not really clear and transparent , as the journalist found during his research.
According to Izambard, the visited research laboratory in Wuhan was arranged like a kind of bunker , with an earthquake-proof floor and a size of 3000 square meters. Portraits of French politicians are said to hang on the walls, including the former interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve , who inaugurated the laboratory. The photo of the French entrepreneur Alain Merieux , who earned three billion euros in medical research, also hangs there.
Corona pandemic: “The Chinese only wanted them
The laboratory was built under French supervision . The French should provide their knowledge, but quickly lost to the control . Izambard documented this in his book. Due to bad experiences during a laboratory visit in northern China, the French wanted to contractually regulate joint research * in Wuhan . However, cooperation with the Chinese was hardly possible . At the end of the process, which lasted more than ten years, billionaire Merieux even got out and told French radio station France Inter, "I will not reveal a state secret if I reveal that there has not been a single meeting of the Franco-Chinese committee on infectious diseases since 2016. "
"The French have been somewhat chilled by the lack of transparency of the Chinese," says Antoine Izambard, author of the book Dangerous Liaisons. "Their explanations remained opaque on the use they could make of these P3s .... This raised a lot of fears." # P4https: //t.co/uW4aQsDzRD
- Rosalyn Tien (@RosalynTien) April 25, 2020"The Chinese only wanted to acquire the technology , but did not want to be looked at in the cards, " Izambard describes this type of partnership . France had previously delivered four level three laboratories to China, but nothing is known about their whereabouts. Scenes of secrecy are said to have also occurred in Wuhan. An agreed posting of 50 French scientists was unsuccessful, and there was no agreed further training for the Chinese researchers. France urged colleagues in Wuhan to cooperate with the World Health Organization (WHO). But this never happened , because the laboratory was never approved by the WHO .
Corona: Journalist visits research laboratory - "Not a single researcher meets"
One thing surprised him when he personally visited the laboratory. "I have n't met a single researcher , nor have I seen a single laboratory animal," he told the world on Sunday . You must have shown him a cleaned area. The research laboratory is one of the highest safety class four , of which only around 30 exist worldwide. Here, life-threatening pathogens such as Ebola, H5N1, and also corona viruses * are used. Errors here can have serious consequences .
The Institute for Virology in Wuhan has also come into focus when it comes to the question of virus origin *. The thesis that the pathogen is said to have escaped after a laboratory accident is being propagated worldwide, particularly by the United States . According to President Donald Trump *, his secret services should follow the relevant instructions. China denies continue the allegations of the Americans. Izambard considers an accident to be "not very plausible" because there is no evidence.
However, due to the neighboring disease control agency, this cannot be ruled out. As is well known, the laboratory is not far from the Huanan market , where the coronavirus * initially appeared as zoonosis *.
L'histoire secrète du laboratoire P4 de Wuhan vendu par la France à la Chine https://t.co/r61L6WmVRl via @Challenges
- Antoine Izambard (@a_izambard) April 30, 2020* Merkur.de and tz.de are part of the nationwide Ippen-Digital editors network.
Rubric list picture: © AFP / STR
