Live Blog - 11 April 2020

11 April 2020
Live blog 0 updates

Our live blog on the coronavirus pandemic and its impact on the world is on every day from 1200-1600 Central European Summer Time (equivalent to 1400-1800 in Tbilisi and Dubai).

This blog is compiled by our team of journalists and researchers based in The Hague in the Netherlands and in Tbilisi, Georgia, working with partners and associates in a number of different countries. You can also follow us on twitter @commonspaceEU. We are happy to hear from you wherever you are. Please send us your comments, stories and suggestions by email to editor@commonspace.eu

This live blog has been running daily since 19 March. You can read earlier blogs here

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Saturday, 11 April 2020

___________________

1600 CEST (1800 Tbilisi Dubai)

We are now pausing this blog for today. We will be back tomorrow Sunday at 1200 noon CEST (1400 in Tbilisi aand Dubai)

It has been another difficult day with plenty of bad new from across the world. This war against covid 19 has not been won yet. That is why it is important that unless there is good reason we should all stay at home.

From all of us in The Hague and in Tbilisi, a good evening. Be Safe! Be Healthy! Be Happy!

____________________________________

1545 CEST (1745 Tbilisi/Dubai)

     Georgia-Poland

We wanted to end with a positive story of two friendly countries helping each other. These expressions of solidarity across countries and communities fills us all with hope for the future.

Today #Polish Ambassador together with #SolidarityFundPL_In Georgia handed over equipment to Emergency Management Service of Georgian Interior Ministry

 

1530 CEST (1730 Tbilisi/Dubai)

Situation in Yemen and Libya

Whilst we are reporting about the difficult situation resulting from covid-19 across the world, and whilst we have emphasisied that this virus knows no frontier and no status, we must highlight the vulnerability of those countries caught in conflict, such as Yemen and Libya.

  • The UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Anwar Gargash, has discussed the need for an immediate end to hostilities in Libya in a conversation with Stephanie Turco Williams, the deputy head of the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), he revealed in a tweet.And Gargash said there was a shared concern for Libya's ability to handle the situation with COVID-19 as an equal priority to any ceasefire. 
  • Williams previously said that an escalation in Libya's war was straining the country's ability to handle the coronavirus pandemic. "It's incredibly reckless. It's inhumane, it's stretching the capacity of local authorities and the health infrastructure that is already decimated," Stephanie Williams told Bloomberg in an interview. "And they're whistling past the graveyard, that's what they're doing."
  • One of Tripoli's largest hospitals has been forced to close amid intensified fighting in which the facility came under three days of shelling as the country reported at least 24 cases of coronavirus infections.
  • We also heard today that the water supply to the capital city Tripoli has been cut after a water reservoir was captured by a rebel group. The UN has condemned this in the strongest terms.

Commonspace.eu supports the calls of UN Secretary-General for an immediate cease fire in all conflict zones so that humanity can concentrate on fighting covid-19

 

1515 CEST (1715 Tbilisi/Dubai)

  Georgia

We have some updates from the commonspace.eu team in Tbilisi on the latest from Georgia

There are now 233 confirmed covid-19 cases in Georgia and 3 people have died. 4856 persons are under strict quarantine

Two patients, including a two-year-old child, have recovered in Bochorishvili Clinic, Maka Sologhashvili, Chairperson of the Supervisory Board of the clinic has said. According to her, a 5 year-year-old child with pneumonia, who is from Lentekhi cluster, has been transferred to one of the clinics in Tbilisi

.

 

1500 CEST (1700 Tbilisi/Dubai)

  Egypt

Egypt is a country with a hundred million people and not very adequate medical facilities. Noman Ahmed from research team has been looking at the situation in the country:

In Egypt, the coronavirus pandemic is shedding light on the country's poor health system. Many believe that hospitals are contributing to the spread of the virus amid daily announcements of doctors and nurses resulting in positive.

Last month, several hospitals were shut down including the University of Alexandria Hospital, the Al-Shorouk Hospital in Cairo and the Al-Salam Hospital in Mohandessin when medical staff were found to be infected by COVID-19.

The National Cancer Institute in Cairo was also shut down after several cases among care workers were found to be positive. The Institute was participating in the efforts to fight the virus outbreak. It is the largest of its kind in the Middle East treating 300,000 patients annually and employing 600 nurses and 750 doctors.

Such news ignited Egyptians' fears about the weaknesses of healthcare in the country after initially receiving signs that everything was under control.

Reports then surfaced that hospital managers were forcing nurses to work in heavily infected hospitals.

"I understand the concerns and fears toward doctors at this stage," Dr. Ahmed Youssef, a chest specialist at a quarantine hospital in Cairo, said. "I too am afraid of becoming infected, but we must all join forces to fight this virus," Youssef said.

In the meantime many Egyptians are relying on relief from humanitarian agencies for their livelyhood. In this picture a woman carries a carton filled with food distributed by the non-governmental organization Resala in Cairo, Egypt, Thursday, April 9  picture credit AP)

___________________

1430 CEST (1630 Tbilisi/Dubai)

   Turkey

We are on this blog watching carefully the situation in Turkey, where the risks of a huge hike in covid-19 cases is very real

At the moment Turkey reports 47,029 cases, and 1006 deaths.

The Government has introduced a weekend curfew in 31 Turkish provinces, including the large cities of Istanbul and Ankara

One victim of the virus has been the 39th Istanbul Film Festival, which was planned to be organized by the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (İKSV) between April 10 and 21. It has been delayed to a later date due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But there is a silver lining. A number of entries have been put on line for everyone to see at home:

MUBI, the online cinema platform sponsoring the festival, will present a selection of the festival's award-winning films to the audience on the same dates in cooperation with the event.

This 12-film selection of MUBI, brought together for those who have missed or want to watch again, consists of films that have won the Golden Tulip Award, Jury Special Award and FIPRESCI Award in the festival's national and international competitions.

The platform also announced that it will present a 30-day free trial period to moviegoers on mubi.com/istanbul so that they can watch the Istanbul Film Festival special selection.

________________________________

1400 CEST (1600 Tbilisi/Dubai)

China

We have not had too much news on this blog from China. The latest reports are of a slight increase in covid-19 infections. Our Research Team member, Maximiliaan van Lange, has this update:

After the relaxation of lockdown measures in China last week, the fear of the second wave of infections has now arisen. Yesterday (11 April), the Chinese authorities announced reports of new infections with the COVID-19 virus in the country. It concerns 46 new infections. A slight increase compared to Thursday when there were 42 new infections. No new infections were reported in China for an extended period. The Chinese authorities also reported three new deaths from the virus. This brings the number of deaths in China to 3,339. Remarkably however China says that the cause of the new infections probably lies with travelers arriving from abroad.

Worldwide, however, there are doubts about the reliability of the Chinese figures. Scientists suspect that not everyone who is ill is included in the statistics, such as patients with no or hardly any symptoms or people who die at home.

 

1345 CEST 1545 Tbilisi/Dubai)

Our wellness moment today comes with a piece of advice on how to make best use of free time you may have on your hands if you are in self-isolation - learning a language. Some have told us they are spending their time planning their next holiday. That beach in Ibiza or Bodrum this year somehow appears to be more blue and inviting than ever.

But hey, how about getting ready for it by polishing your Spanish or Turkish. Or how about going for that exotic language that you always thought it would be so great to know. Our indifatigable William Murray has been putting together some advice as to how and where to start. Read it here

_________________________

1330 CEST (1530 Tbilisi/Dubai)

These are unusual times, and nothing is working as we were used to before. this goes to the highest levels of government. The traditional summits of world leades in different formats were part of the daily political and diplomatic life: the carcades with police outriders, the family photo - with the oligatory statesman arriving late and leaving the others waiting uncomfortably; the set piece speeches in round, oval, square or rectanular tables, depending on the format. That is now all gone.

But summits are still taking place, but on line. We already had a G20 summit, and the EU leaders seem as if they can't wait for the next one. Yesterday it was the turn of the Turkic countries leaders to come together in a virtual summit hosted by the current Chair of the group, Azerbaijan 

 

_________________________

1305 CEST (1505 Tbilisi/Dubai)

  Iran

We love this!

________________________

1245 CEST (1445 Tbilisi/Dubai)

  United States

The big story overnight was from the United Stateswhere as our research team member, Maximiliaan van Lange, reports the death toll increased sharply.

Johns Hopkins University figures show that 2,108 people died in the United States in the last 24 hours as a result of the COVID-19 virus. This makes the U.S. the first country to report more than two thousand deaths in a day.

The total number of deaths has therefore risen to 19,000.
Last Friday (April 10) President Donald Trump said that the U.S. economy needs to be reopened as soon as possible, but that it is too early now.

___________________________________

1230 CEST (1430 Tbilisi/Dubai)

Some updates from the MENA region from our research team member Noman Ahmed.

  Egypt

Egypt enters its second wave of night curfew with both death toll and recoveries rising. As of yesterday, Egypt registered 1794 total cases with 135 deaths and 384 recoveries. 

The government said it hasn't reached the peak yet and expects a rise. 

Meanwhile, the Egyptian government seems to be sending mixed messages with calls for workers to return back to factories, yet it is also advising residents to stay home as much as possible. Many people expressed frustrations against the social distancing measures. 

Morocco 

Morocco has started manufacturing its own ventilators. 500 devices are expected to be ready by mid-April to help meet demand. Morocco currently has 1448 total infections, with 107 deaths and 122 recoveries. 

Both non-invasive ventilators, where an oxygen mask is secured over the patient's face, and invasive models where a tube feeds oxygen straight to a sedated patient's lungs will be made using locally supplied material. Doctors and engineers from public institutions helped design ventilators. 

In the meantime the process of disinfection of public areas continues. Here a municipality worker is seen hard at it in Rabat, the capital city, earlier this week.

 

________________________________________________

 

1215 CEST  (1415 Tbilisi/Dubai)

We start this morning with an update from across the South Caucasus 

Abkhazia

Abkhazia's human rights commissioner, Asida Shakryl, called on all media and citizens to respect privacy and personal data of COVID-19 patients.

Local TV stations had earlier disclosed the personal information of a patient by showing pictures of her passport, Users on social media have also shared footage of a hospital where another patient was being treated. 

Abkhazia has been in a state of emergency with a curfew enacted since 28 March. Yesterday, the Abkhazian de facto authrotiies introduced fines for those breaching curfew rules. 

  Armenia

The Government of Armenia will ask parliament to renew the State of Emergency but the government has ialso ncreased the number of areas were activity can resume. However public transport is now going to be stopped completely (except for taxis)

This is apparently to try to prevent irreparable damage to the economy.

In the meantime the number of cases in Armenia has now increased to 966 and there were two new deaths in the last twenty four hours.

 Azerbaijan

Writing on commonspace.eu this morning the Azerbaijani analyst Ahmad Alili says that covid-19 has brought Azerbaijanis together and that the crisis is the first big test for the newly appointed state officials who had no time to settle into their jobs before being faced with this global crisis. He concludes:

"COVID-19 in Azerbaijan  is a test not only for the public health management system, but also tests the unity among people, among groups with different political views, and among different ethnic groups. Besides, it can also create a favourable environment for confidence-building measures across the region, especially between Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians and Azerbaijanis. "

You can read it here

 

_______________________________________________

Goodday and welcome to our readers to this live blog on commonspace.eu

It is Saturday, 11 April 2020, 12 noon Central Europe and 14.00 hours in Tbilisi and Dubai. We will be live for the next four hours with updates on the coronavirus from across the world, but focusing especially on the Caucasus and Central Asia, Europe and the Middle East. For those asking why we focus more on these regions, the answer is that this is where our expertise lays, and also where most of our readers are. But we will ofcourse report from other regions as necessary.

Today is the second day of the Easter weekend when Christians mark the death and resurrection of Christ. It is a big holiday in most of Europe - although for Orthodox Christians Easter comes one week after. This time is usually a time for family reunions,and for the famous easter eggs. In many countries there are egg hunts - coloured eggs are hidden in different places and children go round trying to find them. This year with billions of people in self isolation this may not be possible. But you can still have easter egg fun, for example by colouring stones like easter eggs as is shown in our cover picture today.

Latest

Editor's choice
Monday Commentary
Monday Commentary: PEACE IN OUR TIME?
Trending

Monday Commentary: PEACE IN OUR TIME?

19 October 2026
Making peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan was never going to be simple, nor easy, nor quick. It is taking time, writes Dennis Sammut in this Monday Commentary. “There is a sense of realism coming from the leaders of the two countries – President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan and prime minister Nikol Pashinyan of Armenia, that frankly, is necessary and welcome”, he writes. At a time when conflicts are raging all over the world – from Ukraine to the Gulf, from Africa to South Asia, the prospect that Armenia and Azerbaijan had finally, after decades of conflict that left thousands of dead and many more displaced, decided on embarking on a journey of peace was welcomed. Peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan can be top-down up to a point. Both leaders have spent political capital preparing for a peace deal. But both are aware that their people are not ready for peace yet. In fact, in Armenia, most of the elite are negative toward a peace deal with Azerbaijan. Pashinyan needs time to persuade his countryfolk. That is why 2031 is realistic. Ilham Aliyev runs a tighter shop, but he is also not immune to public opinion. Every time someone hits a landmine in Karabakh, which unfortunately happens often, peace comes into question. Which is why Aliyev chooses to sound hardline, more often than not. In pursuing the peace agenda, both Aliyev and Pashinyan need to proceed cautiously. But they are right in making peace the central issue in their agenda. It is the main issue, and the one that will define them in history. So forward, cautiously but resolutely! In pursuing the peace agenda, Aliyev and Pashinyan need to be supported clearly and unambiguously. There are too many people in Baku and Yerevan who are sitting on the sides, waiting. The international community is not doing enough. It is time to be counted. Otherwise, the spoilers will win, and the region will go back to its bad habits. (Click the image to read the full commentary).
Dennis Sammut
Editor's choice
News
Ukraine Peace Talks Set to Expand as Russia and Europe Clash Over Post-war Security
Trending

Ukraine Peace Talks Set to Expand as Russia and Europe Clash Over Post-war Security

13 November 2026
Ukraine and Russia could see European countries join the next round of peace negotiations, following talks between US special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Thursday (November 12). However, conflicting positions over European military involvement, Ukraine’s territorial future and the continent’s security arrangements highlight the difficulties facing the diplomatic process. Speaking after the meeting, Witkoff said European participation would be an important development, describing the countries concerned as key partners. Kushner also indicated that Washington had noticed a shift in European attitudes and believed their involvement would not obstruct progress. In a statement published on X, he said the expanded discussions would address broader European security arrangements alongside territorial disputes between Russia and Ukraine. The US envoys subsequently travelled to Dublin, where they met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a European summit. Zelenskyy welcomed the possibility of European participation and expressed hope that the negotiations would include measures to reduce tensions and establish ceasefires. He also reiterated the importance of European representation in decisions concerning the continent’s security. Moscow, however, has offered a more cautious interpretation of the proposed expansion. Putin's aide, Yuri Ushakov, suggested that European countries should first reconsider their military assistance to Kyiv, arguing that their current actions demonstrated an unwillingness to pursue peace. Putin similarly called on Washington to work with its European allies to establish whether they genuinely wanted peace or continued confrontation with Russia. The Russian president also rejected the prospect of European peacekeeping troops being deployed to Ukraine following a potential agreement, describing such a presence as a continuation of the war. His position reflects wider disagreements over the future European security architecture, with Moscow seeking discussions on the continent's broader security arrangements, while European leaders insist that such negotiations cannot replace a settlement of the war. Simultaneously, Zelenskyy raised concerns about disruptions to Starshield, the US-made satellite communications service used by Ukrainian forces. He described Washington’s discussions with Moscow about Europe's future security as unusual and warned against decisions that could undermine Ukraine's sovereignty. Despite the diplomatic activity, fighting continued. Russian drone attacks killed two people in Ukraine's Sumy region and injured five in Rivne, while a separate attack in Russia's Belgorod region killed one person and injured four. Ukrainian agricultural company Kernel Holding also suspended operations at all its oilseed extraction facilities following repeated Russian attacks.

Popular

Editor's choice
Monday Commentary
Monday Commentary: European-Azerbaijan relations need an intensive and multifaceted dialogue that is frank and honest
Trending

Monday Commentary: European-Azerbaijan relations need an intensive and multifaceted dialogue that is frank and honest

7 September 2026
Last week I visited Baku, Azerbaijan. My visit was relatively short, but very intensive, and had many meetings with stakeholders and colleagues. When I arrived in Baku first time in 1996,  Azerbaijan was a different country: weak, poor, and shaken by defeat in war. For thirty year the Karabakh issue dominated the agenda: the political agenda but also the popular mindset. Now, thirty years later, Azerbaijan has returned to Karabakh, and peace with Armenia is on the horizon. It is a new era for Armenia-Azerbaijan relations, for the South Caucasus, but also for Europe.  But we cannot be complacent: the Peace agreement has been initialed but not signed; borders remain closed; TRIPP is ambitious but remains an idea; and there are spoilers who want to turn the clock back. We must not allow them, and in this Europe and Azerbaijan must work together. Europe’ vanguard organization is the European Union – it is a free union of 27 member states; it is a strong global economic force, and increasingly a diplomatic and military force too. But it remains “work in progress” and can often appear dysfunctional. It often lacks collective and institutional memory. In its dealings with Azerbaijan the EU has made many mistakes – not least opening the delegation here late – in 2008. It sometimes appears condescending. Some utterances from the European Parliament and from some quarters in some member states are not understandable even for me. They irritate the Azerbaijanis, but serve no other purpose But Azerbaijan has also not handled relations with the EU well. It has failed to respond when the hand of friendship reached out; and it confused irritating actions, sometimes by well-meaning people; sometimes by outright spoilers, with strategic action. In short, EU-Azerbaijan relations have suffered from a lack of proper dialogue. This dialogue must be frank, honest and multi-faceted involving different segments of society on both sides.   Is Azerbaijan Europe? When Azerbaijan applied to join the Council of Europe in the 1990s, there were some who opposed, saying this was not Europe. I was one of the people who argued that Armenia and Azerbaijan may be on the periphery of the continent geographically, but were European in essence. Certainly their elites. During the discussion on 4 September in Baku, my friend Farhad Mammedov, mentioned that Azerbaijan is not interested in joining the EU, and was now close to the Central Asian countries in the 5 plus 1 format. Neither things mean that Azerbaijan is not Europe. There are several European countries that are not in the EU, and do not want to be, for example Norway and Switzerland. Iceland has recently voted to stay out of the EU. The UK was a member and left. Europe is bigger than the EU, and the holding of the European Political Community summit in Baku in 2027 proves that. Despite all the rhetoric, I never heard the president of Azerbaijan  saying that Azerbaijan is not Europe, nor have I heard any European president say it either. Not wanting to join the EU and forging close relations with neighbouring regions does not make Azerbaijan any less European. It is only logical that when Europeans talk to Azerbaijan they talk like family. The conversation is often frank. It must also be honest, and Europeans need always to remember this too. A frank, honest and multi-faceted dialogue A frank, honest and multifaceted dialogue will contribute to relations between Azerbaijan and the rest of Europe: it will avoid misperception, which unfortunately is very common on both sides; it will provide a forum where problems can be discussed and resolved, and it will increase mutual trust, so that together common problems can be addressed. (click image to read the full Monday Commentary)
Dennis Sammut
Editor's choice
Monday Commentary
Monday Commentary: “The barren rocks of Aden” and “These lands of Yemen are so ruthless”
Trending

Monday Commentary: “The barren rocks of Aden” and “These lands of Yemen are so ruthless”

21 September 2026
There are two early 20th-century tunes that mark foreign attempts to occupy and “pacify” Yemen. The Scottish tune “The barren rocks of Aden” marks the mobilisation of Highland soldiers, enlisted to be deployed to the Yemeni port of Aden, that in 1837 became the last colony to be incorporated into the British Empire. The tune talks of the harshness of the terrain, but is celebratory, It was even played as a farewell tune to Sir William Luce at the parade in Sharjah celebrating his end as “British Viceroy” in the Middle East in 1966. The second tune is an Anatolian lament. As Ilker Sezer reminded us this weekend, in his weekly feature on “Turkiye Today”, it “mourns the tragic fate of Ottoman soldiers dispatched to the harsh, remote deserts of Yemen during the fall of the empire, young men who marched away from their villages and never returned home. Most of their names, and numbers, were never recorded. Yet, their fate left a mark on the Turkish psyche.” Subsequent invaders have discovered that Yemen is a grave that cannot be overcome by the strength of modern technology, and that whilst Yemeni society is splintered and divided, building a reliable alliance with Yemeni factions is difficult. These are the harsh lessons facing Saudi Arabia, as the Kingdom faces its biggest challenge in its modern history. The leadership of the Kingdom now has to respond decisively. At stake is their very credibility. This is likely to be a long and messy conflict. Saudi military objectives need to be focused: to box in the Houthis rather than destroy them. This is likely to include: (a) regaining territory lost on the Red Sea coast; (b) control over Bab el Mandeb Strait; (c) some kind of cordon sanitaire on the Saudi-Yemeni border; and if things go well (d) the capture of Sanaa. All this would not eliminate the Houthi problem, but it will contain it. In the end the Saudis will have to continue managing Yemen with a mixture of carrot and stick. For the moment, the stick is likely, but the carrot cannot be forgotten either. (click the image to read the Monday Commentary in full)
Dennis Sammut