New Events
Covid-19 Dashboard: >1.5M known cases, >89k deaths – Johns Hopkins, NYT Tracker
… up from 1M cases, 50k deaths last Friday
Egypt / Sudan
Millions of Egyptians on the street – irregular workers – regardless of lockdown – Link
Nigeria
Nigerian megachurches adjust to being empty – Link
Ethiopia / Horn / East Africa
Tanzania’s leader urges people to worship in throngs against coronavirus – Link
… unfortunate. Churches will not be a blessing if they are a vector for pandemic …
Southern / Middle Africa
South Africa extends lockdown 2 more weeks – Link
Central Asia / Caucasus
Virus spreading through Muslim da’wah training to spread Islam – Link
Saudi / Israel / Lebanon / Syria / Gulf
100s of Saudi royals stricken with coronavirus – Link
Saudi coalition announces cease-fire in Yemen amid coronavirus fears – Link
… truce to last two weeks …
West Asia / Turkey / Jordan
Turkey orders all citizens to wear masks – Link
… and builds more hospitals – Link
Jordan steps up virus precautionary measures in Syrian refugee camps – Link
Iran/Iraq
The risk that Iraq might fall apart – Link
… virus. Near-bankruptcy.
Afghanistan / Pakistan / Pashto
Afghanistan: Kabul on complete lockdown – Link
Pakistan faced with dilemma of starvation and lockdown – Link
… same basic problem faced by all undeveloped countries with cash economies …
Mosques stay open in Pakistan even as virus death toll rises – Link
India
Hints the virus lockdown in India could be extended – Link
“Muslims are foreigners”: Inside India’s campaign to decide who is a citizen – Link
Quarantined families in India face discrimination – Link
‘I just want to go home’: desperate millions hit by brutal lockdown – Link
… horrible situation, but I’m also waiting for articles about the millions infected/many dead
“No masks, no gloves”: the waste collectors of India, paid $4/day – Link
… “missing work would mean no food on the table for days”
India makes face masks mandatory for 300 million people – Link
… despite global shortage. Where are they supposed to find the masks?
Bangladesh
Lockdown imposed on Cox Bazaar district, where 1 million Rohingya are in camps – Link
China
Inside Wuhan as city tries to return to normal – Link
… the end of the lockdown, in pictures – Link
… and more pictures. Link
… Wuhan airport has re-opened. Link
Over 55,000 people are estimated to be leaving Wuhan – Link
… “anyone with a green health code, who passes temperature checks”…
China refusing to allow US companies with manufacturing plants in China to export their goods outside China – Link, Why
China itself probably doesn’t know the extent of the outbreak – Link
China closes its land border with Russia to prevent infections – Link
How China made its lockdown work – Link
… when you read what Asian countries did, you think–would we ever do that in the West?
Taiwan / Mongolia / Macau / Hong Kong
The 2nd wave has begun to hit Hong Kong – Link
… here’s what life inside a government quarantine camp is like …
Japan
Japan’s state of emergency is no lockdown – Link
… only applies to 7 of Japan’s 47 prefectures …
Southeast Asia
Magical spells are a booming business in Myanmar – Link
4/6 Indonesia announces surge in deaths, 24 doctors now dead – Link
… Jakarta coffin maker faces grueling days as coronavirus death toll climbs – Link
… indicators of actual death toll, vs reported …
Thailand suspends all incoming flights, 4/4 – Link
… Thai returnees told to report for quarantine – Link
Eid al-Fitr and Indonesia’s struggle with Covid-19 – Link
… mass migration in religious festival could worsen spread of virus
Thailand: ½ of people returning from mass religious meeting in Indonesia infected – Link
… 100s from meeting in Sulawesi quarantined …
Singapore’s post-lockdown virus surge sparks fears of new breakouts – Link
… migrant worker dormitories quarantined after cases surface – Link
… Singapore applies more draconian lockdown – Link
Europe / North America
“Catastrophe is coming”: disaster looms as coronavirus reaches Greek refugee camps – Link
USA: Food backs are overrun, cars line up for miles at food banks – Link
Coronavirus creates conflict for churches: danger of gatherings vs solace – Link
… new religious freedom tensions – Link
… not just evangelicals: conservative Catholics push back against Mass stops – Link
… can faith healing work by phone? A surprisingly generous article on varying views. Link
New Data
US air traffic falls from 2.1 million per day (March 1) to 95,000 per day now. Link
Map of partial and complete border closures – Link
New Longreads
CT: If Easter is only a symbol, then to hell with it. Link
… “Christians do not make Easter through our worship and our calendar”
Dreaded uptick worldwide of dead spiritual leaders – Link
The world’s refugee camps are are a coronavirus disaster in waiting – Link
… Syrian camps braced for outbreak – Link
… Lebanon’s refugee camps in the time of the virus – Link
Coronavirus is changing the rituals of death for many religions – Link
As virus layoffs surge in richer countries, poorer ones lose remittance payments – Link
Migrant workers can’t afford a lockdown – Link
In scramble for coronavirus supplies, rich countries push poor ones aside – Link
The porous borders where the virus cannot be controlled – Link
More vaccines, treatments move toward human trials – Link
As virus hits US, some expatriates stay in Africa – Link
Summer heat may not diminish virus strength – Link
Possibility of global food supply chains being disrupted by virus – Link
Can a billion people living in slums survive the virus? Link
Virus could push half a billion people into poverty – Link
Autocrats’ quandary: you can’t arrest a virus – Link
Coronavirus in Africa: emergency laws vs individual rights – Link
New Technology
Our father, who art in cyberspace: churches turn to the Internet – Link
Will Egypt get mobile phone surveillance app tracking virus? – Link
“The lesson we are learning from Zoom” – Link
… too rapid adoption of technology can lead to an erosion of privacy …
… once lost, hard to get it back …
Zoom brings in former Facebook security head amid lawsuits – Link
Taiwan bans official use of Zoom over cybersecurity concerns – Link
How China’s army of apps helped people through Coronavirus isolation – Link
… fascinating look at the online infrastructure in China …
… makes you wonder, how many people miss the world outside the Great Firewall? …
Whatsapp imposes strict rules on forwarding messages during virus pandemic – Link
… to fight the viral spread of misinformation …