What's Happening: Hope in Wuhan, unequal access to US tests
Armed Kazakhstan police wearing face masks block an area in Almaty, Kazakhstan, Thursday, March 19, 2020. A residential block in Almaty, Kazakhstan's former capital and largest city, has been surrounded by the military and blocked for entry and exit after one of the residents was diagnosed with the new coronavirus. For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms. For some it can cause more severe illness. (AP Photo/Vladimir Tretyakov)
Workers of the Ryongaksan Soap Factory make disinfectant in Pyongyang, North Korea Thursday, March 19, 2020. North Korea has been engaged in an intense campaign to guard against COVID-19, though it hasn’t officially reported any cases of infection. For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms. For some it can cause more severe illness. (AP Photo/Jon Chol Jin)
A man is swabbed as he is tested for COVID-19 as vehicles line up at the Doris Ison Health Center, Wednesday, March 18, 2020, in Miami. The testing is being provided by Community Health of South Florida, Inc. According to the World Health Organization, most people recover in about two to six weeks, depending on the severity of the illness. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Rio's Christ the Redeemer statue is lit up with the flags of countries currently afflicted by the new coronavirus in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Wednesday, March 18, 2020. For most people COVID-19 causes mild or moderate symptoms. For others, especially the elderly and people with existing health problems, it can cause many other serious illnesses, including pneumonia. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)
A patient wears a protective face mask as she is loaded into an ambulance at The Brooklyn Hospital Center emergency room, Wednesday, March 18, 2020, in New York. Anticipating a spike in coronavirus patients, New York City-area hospitals are clearing out beds, setting up new spaces to triage patients and urging people with mild symptoms to consult health professionals by phone or video chat instead of flooding emergency rooms that could be overrun. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
People wearing face masks travel by metro in Brussels, Wednesday, March 18, 2020. Belgium has ordered further lockdown measures starting Wednesday, following in the steps of European neighbours Italy, Spain and France. For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Office lights of the Lombardy region headquarters building in Milan, northern Italy, compose the Italian words 'State a casa' (Stay home), Wednesday, March 18, 2020. Italian authorities say too many people are violating last week's national decree, which allows people to leave homes to go to workplaces, buy food or other necessities or for brief strolls outside to walk dogs or get exercise. For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe ill…
Pepole walk on a shopping road in Berlin, Germany, Thursday, March 19, 2020. Due to the coronavirus outbreak German authorities ask people to avoid large crowds of people. For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms. For some it can cause more severe illness. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn)
A woman carries her shopping including bags of toilet paper, in downtown Frankfurt, Germany, Wednesday, March 18, 2020. Because of the spread of the coronavirus, bars, cinemas, theatres, museums, and many shops are now closed. For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms. For some it can cause more severe illness. (Arne Dedert/dpa via AP)
These are some of the latest developments Thursday in the world's coronavirus pandemic:
HOPE IN WUHAN, BUT DEATH TOLL IN ITALY NEARS STARK TOLL
The Chinese city of Wuhan, the original epicenter of the new coronavirus, reported no new homegrown infections on Thursday, in what was a sign of hope for the world and a lesson in the strict measures needed to halt its spread. But in a stark warning for the world, Italy appeared set to surpass China’s death toll from the virus. The two milestones were a dramatic illustration of how much the global outbreak has pivoted toward Europe and the United States.
U.S. ANTI-VIRUS MEASURES POSE NEW THREAT TO CHINA'S FACTORIES
Factories in China, struggling to reopen after the coronavirus shut down the economy, face a new threat from U.S. anti-disease controls that might disrupt the flow of microchips and other components they need. Sustained disruption of activity in the U.S. is expected to lead to disruptions to manufacturing activity in China. The shock threatens to set back the ruling Communist Party’s efforts to revive the world’s second-largest economy after it declared victory over the outbreak.
TRADITIONAL FRENCH SOAP ENJOYS REVIVAL
Amid the rapid spread of the new coronavirus across Europe, the hallmark Marseille tradition of soap-making is enjoying a renaissance, as the French rediscover an essential local product. Savonnerie de la Licorne, a family business going back more than a century which runs four soap shops on the Old Port, a museum and a small factory in the heart of Marseille, has seen its shop sales increase 30% and delivery orders quadruple since Italy declared a state of emergency over the coronavirus.
TESTS FOR CELEBRITIES UNDERLINE INEQUALITIES IN U.S.
Celebrities, politicians and professional athletes in the United States are being tested for the coronavirus even when they don't have fevers or other symptoms of COVID-19. That’s fueling a perception that the wealthy and famous have been able to jump to the head of the line to get tested while others have been turned away or met with long delays. The concerns over preferential treatment underscore a fundamental truth about inequalities baked into the American health care system — those with the financial means can often receive a different level of service.
ISRAEL'S NETANYAHU ACCUSED OF USING CRISIS TO CEMENT POWER
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing growing accusations that he is exploiting the coronavirus crisis to entrench himself in power and undermining the country’s democratic foundations after pushing a series of emergency measures. There have been sweeping restrictions that have put Israel in near-shutdown mode. Meanwhile, Netanyahu has managed to postpone his own pending criminal trial, authorize unprecedented electronic surveillance of Israeli citizens and block parliament from pressing ahead with legislation aimed at pushing him from office.
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