Paris Louvre Museum closes over coronavirus fears

The Louvre Museum in Paris has closed doors to visitors after workers staged a walkout amid fears of coronavirus outbreak, much to the dismay of the potential tourists.

Around 300 staff met Sunday morning to discuss the viral outbreak, and refused to return to work after the management failed to reassure them that the risk was contained.

"Despite talks with management and the staff doctor, the Louvre Museum was unable to open in the absence of sufficient personnel," a spokeswoman for the museum said after the meeting.

She added that there would be another meeting on Monday, but it was unclear when the Louvre would reopen.

Long lines of disappointed visitors snaked outside the world's most-visited museum as the meeting was held.

Louvre management later confirmed that the museum was closed for the entire day, adding that it would refund ticket-holders.

"We apologize for any inconvenience and will keep you informed as the situation develops," the museum said on its website.

The staff demanded stepped up protective measures, including the provision of hand sanitizing gel and window barriers to separate cashiers from the public.

In January, workers also forced a one-day closure in a strike over the government's pension reform plans.

France has reported 100 confirmed cases of the illness and two deaths.

In a bid to contain the coronavirus spread in France, authorities said that until further notice public gatherings in confined spaces with more than 5,000 people should be cancelled.

However, museums are not covered by the ban announced by the government.

The Louvre, near the banks of the Seine river in central Paris, received 9.6 million visitors last year, most of them foreigners including Americans, Chinese and Europeans.

Germany coronavirus cases almost double to 129

Meanwhile in Germany, the number of people infected with the novel coronavirus has jumped sharply to 129, according to official data.

The latest tally given by the Robert Koch Institute, Germany's center for disease control and prevention, showed that the number of cases had almost doubled from 66 on Saturday morning.

Germany's most populous state of North Rhine-Westphalia has emerged as a hotspot after an infected couple attended carnival celebrations there, infecting dozens of people.

Concern grows in EU over Coronavirus threat

The European Commission says it is working around the clock to assist EU countries to prevent the Coronavirus from spreading. Italy has the largest number of confirmed cases in Europe.

The deadly virus has now reached nine of Germany's 16 states, with Frankfurt, Hamburg and Bremen among the cities reporting their first COVID-19 cases.

Speaking to the mass-daily Bild am Sonntag, Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said he did not see a swift end to the virus's spread but was optimistic a cure could be found.

"I estimate that a vaccine will be available by the end of year," he said, adding that he himself had stopped shaking people's hands.

Asked whether Germany would go so far as to close off access to cities or regions, he said "such a scenario would be a last resort".

In Bavaria, machine tool manufacturer DMG Mori asked some 1,600 employees not to come to work on Monday after a worker contracted the virus.

Several hundred people meanwhile were released from quarantine in the district of Heinsberg in North Rhine-Westphalia, allowing them to leave their homes again.

The cluster there has been linked to a carnival gathering on February 15.

Four kindergarten children in Heinsberg also tested positive for the new coronavirus at the weekend, apparently contracted through a member of staff.

Germany has cancelled several major gatherings in a bid to curb the spread of the virus, including this week's ITB travel trade fair in Berlin.

The Michelin Guide restaurant star rating awards slated to take place in Hamburg on Tuesday have also been called off.

Organizers of the Leipzig book fair however said the event, which attracted over 280,000 people last year, would go ahead as planned from March 12-15.

As the coronavirus continues to disrupt air travel and supply chains around the world, Finance Minister Olaf Scholz said the government stood ready to stimulate Germany's export-driven economy if the impact worsened.

"If the situation calls for it, we have the means to launch a fiscal stimulus package," he told Die Welt newspaper.

Italy coronavirus death toll rises to 34

In Italy, the death toll from an outbreak of coronavirus has risen by five to 34 over the past 24 hours, with the accumulative number of cases totaling some 1,694.

The head of the Civil Protection Agency said on Sunday that of those infected, 83 people had recovered.

The contagion came to light 10 days ago and is focused on a handful of hotspots in the north of Italy with isolated cases reported in many other regions.

Nigeria identifies 100 suspected coronavirus cases

Nigerian authorities have been in touch with around 100 people who may have been exposed to an Italian man who is the country's first coronavirus patient, the Lagos state health commissioner says.

The man arrived in Lagos, Nigeria's commercial capital, on Feb. 24 from Milan on a Turkish Airlines flight that had a connection in Istanbul. The following day he travelled to neighboring Ogun state and was in the country for almost two full days before being isolated.

Asked in a telephone interview about the number of people Nigerian authorities had been in touch with who may have had contact with the man, Lagos state Health Commissioner Akin Abayomi said: "It is around 100 people but that number is increasing every minute."

The Italian man, who is being treated at a hospital in the Yaba district of Lagos, works as a vendor for cement company Lafarge Africa Plc in the southwestern state of Ogun.

The company issued a statement on Sunday in which it said its cement production lines remained open.

It said 39 people who were in direct contact with the man had been quarantined.

The case, which is the first in sub-Saharan Africa, has prompted fears the virus could spread quickly in a region where health systems are already overburdened with cases of malaria, measles, Ebola and other infectious diseases.

Iraq, Bahrain each confirm 6 new coronavirus cases

Iraq has reported six new coronavirus cases on Sunday, bringing the total number of cases there to 19.

The Iraqi Health Ministry said on Sunday two of the six are in the capital Baghdad and the other four in Sulaimaniya in the north east of the country.

Many countries report new cases of coronavirus infection

Many countries, including Russia, Thailand, and Germany, report new cases of infection with the coronavirus.

All had recently returned from neighboring Iran, which has had the highest number of deaths from coronavirus outside of China, where the outbreak originated.

The Health Ministry had earlier issued a separate statement telling Iraqis to avoid any gatherings, be it protests, religious ceremonies or social events to avoid catching the virus.

Iraq on Wednesday had banned public gatherings and barred entry by travelers from Kuwait and Bahrain, prohibiting travel to or from a total of nine countries.

Separately, Bahrain's Ministry of Health confirmed six new coronavirus cases on Sunday, raising the total number to 47 cases.  

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