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President Muhammadu Buhari has suspended the movements of all private jets and passenger flights in Nigeria. The President announced the suspension during a nationwide broadcast on Sunday, March 29, 2020. He said, “Movements of all passenger aircraft, both commercial and private jets, are hereby suspended,” adding that special permits will be issued on a needs basis. READ ALSO:  COVID-19: Hospitals, Medical Establishments And Nine Others Exempted From Total Lock Down Also, as part of the government’s move to curb the spread of COVID-19 across Nigeria, the President ordered a total lock down of Lagos and Ogun states. The order was also extended to the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. Addressing Nigerians the President said,  “Based on the advice of the Federal Ministry of Health and the NCDC, I am directing the cessation of all movements in Lagos and the FCT for an initial period of 14 days with effect from 11pm on Monday, 30th March 2020. “This restriction will als

Nigeria has confirmed fourteen new cases of COVID-19, according to a statement by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC).  Nine of the new cases were confirmed in Lagos State with five in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), the NCDC said. With this, Nigeria now has –  as at 09:30pm, Sunday March 29th, 2020 – 111 confirmed cases of coronavirus, a tweet on the NCDC official Twitter handle, explained. READ ALSO:  COVID-19: Hospitals, Medical Establishments And Nine Others Exempted From Total Lock Down NCDC ✔ @NCDCgov Fourteen new cases of # COVID19 have been reported in Nigeria; 9 in Lagos and 5 in FCT As at 09:30 pm 29th March there are 111 confirmed cases of # COVID19 reported in Nigeria with 1 death. 8,068 9:39 PM - Mar 29, 2020 Twitter Ads info and privacy 8,581 people are talking about this NCDC ✔ @NCDCgov  ·  9 h Fourteen new cases of # COVID19 have been reported in Ni

Chief of Staff to the President, Mr Abba Kyari, attends the Federal Executive Council meeting at the State House in Abuja on July 25, 2018. The Chief of Staff to the President, Mr Abba Kyari has reacted to his health status following a coronavirus test that he tested positive for. In a statement he personally signed on Sunday, the presidential aide said based on medical advice, he will be transferred to Lagos for additional tests and observation after testing positive for COVID-19 diseases last week and thereafter he self-isolated. Kyari said he will be getting treatment at his own expense in order not to burden the public health system, although he claimed he has not experienced high fever or any other symptoms associated with the coronavirus. While explaining that he has been working from home since he tested positive for COVID-19, the Chief of Staff said hopes to return to his desk soon. READ ALSO :  COVID-19: Nigeria Records 14 New Cases He also assured that he has co

President Muhammadu Buhari at his office in the Presidential Villa in Abuja on March 26, 2020. Photo: Twitter- @NGRPresident President Muhammadu Buhari will address the nation by 7pm on Sunday. The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, announced this in a statement hours before President Buhari is scheduled to address Nigerians. “Television, radio, and other electronic media outlets are enjoined to hook up to the network services of the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) and Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN) respectively for the broadcast,” he said. The scheduled broadcast comes amid mixed reactions triggered by what some described as the inability of the President to address the people against the backdrop of coronavirus (COVID) in the country. The Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire, had confirmed the first case of coronavirus in the country in late February. Despite the measures put in place by the Federal and state gover

(COMBO) This combination of pictures created on March 29, 2020 shows views of Attaba square in the centre of the Egyptian capital Cairo, packed with pedestrians on December 12, 2017 (R) and almost empty on March 25, 2020 (L) before Egyptian authorities imposed a two-week night-time curfew as a measure against the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.  AFP Egypt has shuttered several hospitals and quarantined villages in an attempt to halt the rising infection rate of new coronavirus in the most populous Arab state. A Cairo hospital was closed for sterilisation late Saturday after two COVID-19 cases were confirmed. An official at Al-Salam hospital told AFP on Sunday: “We are currently disinfecting the hospital for the safety of everyone concerned. One patient had come in tested positive and a member of our staff was infected after”. He said no date was yet set for re-opening the facility. Other hospitals have also been closed in the last week after recording cases of the virus, inc

People wearing protective masks move packages distributed during the start of the meal delivery campaign of the platform justpeople.nl (gewoonmensen.nl) in collaboration with the Food Bank on March 28, 2020 in The Hague.  AFP The number of confirmed novel coronavirus cases in the Netherlands passed the 10,000 marks on Sunday, the authorities said, as the country focuses on building up herd immunity rather than confining the population of 17 million.  A total of 771 people have died from the COVID-19 epidemic in the Netherlands and 10,866 have tested positive, the country’s institute for public health and environment (RIVM) said. The Dutch government has adopted a series of measures to fight the virus but has decided so far not to force people to stay home. A review of the policy is due to be unveiled on Tuesday. “The number of reported hospital admissions and the number of deceased patients appears to be increasing less rapidly than would be expected without measures in pl

Israeli citizens at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja on March 29, 2020. Channels TV/ Sodiq Adelakun. The Israeli government has commenced the evacuation of its citizens resident in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. According to the government, this comes as part of efforts to protect its citizens from contacting coronavirus (COVID-19) which has killed thousands of people around the world. The evacuation was supervised on Sunday by Mr Yotam Kreiman, the Deputy Chief of Mission at the Israeli Embassy in the nation’s capital. He told reporters at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja that the evacuation became necessary due to the global increase in cases of the COVID-19 pandemic. A private Nigerian airline is airlifting the Israeli nationals on a direct flight to Israel, which is the first time there will be a direct flight to the country from Nigeria. A total of 274 Israelis made up of embassy staff and others working for private companie

A file photo of NIS Comptroller-General, Mr Muhammad Babandede. The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Muhammad Babandede, has tested positive for coronavirus (COVID-19). The Service Public Relations Officer, Sunday James, revealed Babandede’s health status in a statement sent to  Channels Television  on Sunday. He noted that the comptroller-general returned recently from the United Kingdom, although the purpose of the visit was not disclosed. As a top official of the government, James said Babandede adhered to the instructions of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) to self-isolate and undergo a test. “The result of the test came out positive, hence the need to make it public. He conveys his goodwill to all, and he is in stable condition responding to treatment,” the statement said. According to the Service spokesman, the comptroller-general is active and directing as expected, the affairs of the service online. He said the Deputy

(FILES) In this file photo taken on November 20, 2019 Sophie Gregoire Trudeau, wife of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, attends a cabinet swearing-in ceremony at Rideau Hall in Ottawa, Canada. Chris Wattie / AFP. Sophie Gregoire-Trudeau, the wife of Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, has recovered from the novel coronavirus, she said Saturday. “I am feeling so much better and have received the all clear from my physician and Ottawa Public Health,” she wrote on her Facebook page. “From the bottom of my heart, I want to say thank you to everyone who reached out to me with their well wishes.” She had tested positive for the virus on March 12 after returning from Britain, with her husband subsequently going into self-quarantine as a precautionary measure. He has since been giving daily press briefings from the porch of his residence. “I strongly believe that science AND compassion will get us through this crisis,” Gregoire-Trudeau said. “That means listening and

A picture taken on March 26, 2020, shows Saudi policemen manning a checkpoint on King Fahd road in the capital Riyadh, after the Kingdom began implementing an 11-hour nationwide curfew, on the day of an emergency G20 videoconference, to discuss a response to the COVID-19 crisis. FAYEZ NURELDINE / AFP. Saudi authorities have seized more than five million medical masks that were illegally stockpiled amid the coronavirus outbreak, state media reported on Sunday. The commerce ministry seized 1.17 million masks from a private store in Hail, northwest of the capital, after authorities Wednesday confiscated more than four million masks stored in a facility in the western city of Jeddah in violation of commercial regulations, the official Saudi Press Agency reported. The ministry said people behind such activities would be prosecuted, and that the confiscated masks would be redistributed to the open market. Pharmacies in the oil-rich kingdom have reported shortages of masks amid pani

A file photo of Ekiti State Governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi. Ekiti State Governor, Dr Kayode Fayemi, has ordered a dusk-to-dawn curfew in the state and directed all residents to stay at home. As part of measures to curtail the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) in the state, the governor ordered the shutdown of borders around the state. In a broadcast on Sunday at the Government House in Ado-Ekiti, he explained that the decision would be effective for an initial period of 14 days, starting from Monday night. READ ALSO :  Nigeria’s Coronavirus Cases Rise To 97 As NCDC Confirms Eight More Infections Governor Fayemi said the curfew would run from 7pm to 7am each day and warned that legal actions would be taken against violators. He, however, noted that the shutdown order gave allowance to the transportation of food, drugs, and other essential commodities while those on duties deemed essential would be permitted to move freely. Governor Fayemi also announced palliative measures,