A medical worker transfers the body of a victim who died of COVID-19 at a hospital in New York, the United States, April 6, 2020. (Photo by Michael Nagle/Xinhua)
- Global COVID-19 deaths top 170,000 -- Johns Hopkins University
- UN chief wants COVID-19 vaccine available to all
- Total active COVID-19 infections in Italy drop for first time, death toll at 24,114
- France's COVID-19 deaths top 20,000, virus spread slowing
- Chinese mainland reports 11 new confirmed COVID-19 cases
BEIJING, April 21 (Xinhua) -- The following are the updates on the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.
NEW YORK -- Global COVID-19 death cases topped 170,000 on Monday evening, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University.
The Eiffel Tower glitters twice as long as usual to thank and support hospital staff during the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic in Paris, France, March 23, 2020. (Photo by Aurelien Morissard/Xinhua)
PARIS -- France has registered 20,265 COVID-19 deaths, becoming the fourth country to surpass 20,000 COVID-19 deaths after the United States, Italy and Spain, Director-General of Health Jerome Salomon announced on Monday.
During a daily press conference, Salomon said the human loss caused by the coronavirus-caused disease stood at 20,265, up by 547 compared with Sunday's 19,718, faster than Sunday's 395.
The visitors' entrance to the United Nations headquarters in New York, March 10, 2020. (Xinhua/Wang Jiangang)
UNITED NATIONS -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres wants a vaccine for COVID-19 to be available to all people around the world, said his spokesman on Monday.
"It needs to be available for all -- for moral reasons but also that none of us will be safe until all of us are safe," said Stephane Dujarric, the spokesman.
A medical worker works at Intensive Care Unit in Sant'Orsola-Malpighi hospital in Bologna, Italy, on April 15, 2020. (Photo by Gianni Schicchi/Xinhua)
ROME -- The coronavirus pandemic has claimed 24,114 lives in locked-down Italy as total active infections fell for the first time since the pandemic broke out in the northern regions on Feb. 21, according to the latest data released Monday by the country's Civil Protection Department.
Addressing a televised press conference, Civil Protection Department Chief Angelo Borrelli said 454 new fatalities were registered over the past 24 hours.
Members of the epidemic prevention and control work team for Kyrgyzstan pose for group photos at Diwopu International Airport in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, April 20, 2020. (Xinhua/Zhao Ge)
BISHKEK -- A group of Chinese medical workers arrived at Manas International Airport in Kyrgyzstan's capital Bishkek on Monday to assist in the fight against COVID-19.
The 10-member team from west China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region includes six medical experts specializing in disease prevention and control, traditional Chinese medicine and respiratory medicine, among others.
A staff member displays samples of the COVID-19 inactivated vaccine at Sinovac Biotech Ltd., in Beijing, March 16, 2020. (Xinhua/Zhang Yuwei)
GENEVA -- World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Monday that as the organization is continuing to lead the R&D, more than 100 countries have joined the efforts to evaluate therapeutics for COVID-19.
A total of 1,200 patients have been randomized from the first five countries, he said at a virtual press conference from Geneva.
A staff member disinfects a car in Johannesburg, South Africa, April 16, 2020. (Photo by Yeshiel/Xinhua)
CAPE TOWN -- South Africa's COVID-19 cases have surged to 3,300, up by 142 from the previous count, Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said Monday.
Four more patients have died of the virus, bringing the death toll to 58, said the minister, adding the total number of recoveries stood at 1,055.
A staff member helps a passenger of flight MU2527 of China Eastern airlines to take luggage at the Phoenix International Airport in Sanya, south China's Hainan Province, April 8, 2020. (Xinhua/Yang Guanyu)
BEIJING -- Chinese health authority said Tuesday that it received reports of 11 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on the mainland Monday, of which four were imported.
The other seven new cases were domestically transmitted, the National Health Commission said in a daily report, noting that six cases were reported in Heilongjiang Province and one in Guangdong Province. ■
