Νews in brief

Greece’s Health Ministry confirmed 5 new cases of coronavirus in Greece,  bringing the total number in the country to 89.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is expected to announce additional measures to contain the virus, early this evening.

Greece shuts down all schools for two weeks, as part of measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus infection.
The closure affects all school levels, from daycare and kindergarten to university level, including foreign language schools and prep schools (frontistiria).

The school curriculum will conclude normally, Education Minister Niki Kerameοs has stated and added that adjustments to the schedule would ensure that class time is not lost. Adjustments include cancelling school excursions, shortening the Easter vacation, and extending the school year.
Kerameοs also noted that the student parades for March 25 holiday would likely be cancelled.

The condition of the 66-year-old man who contracted the virus while on a religious coach tour to Egypt has taken a turn for the worse and that he is in critical condition in the intensive care unit of the University Hospital of Rio in Patra.

All driving school exams have been postponed for 2 weeks, after a decision of Regional Governor Giorgos Patoulis.

The health minister of Great Britain, Nadine Dorries has become the first MP to be diagnosed with coronavirus, prompting concerns about the potential spread of the illness at Westminster and even at Downing Street, where she attended a reception last week.

Austria has banned people entering the country from Italy unless they carry a medical certificate.

Austria has seen 158 cases of coronavirus so far. By contrast, Italy has had more than 10 thousand cases and 631 deaths.

Turkey has also announced its first case of coronavirus.

States of emergency have been declared in Michigan and Massachusetts, as the number of Covid-19 cases in the US passed οne thousand.

The European Union will do whatever it takes to tackle the financial impact of the new coronavirus epidemic.

Among the measures to be taken, is the establishment of a special fund called the «corona-fund» that will provide 25 billion euros for investment with the view to boosting the economy in the short-term.

Austria and Poland have agreed to send dozens of police officers to the Greek-Turkish border to contain an influx of refugees and migrants being spurred on by Ankara to push through the frontier into the European Union.

A summit for the refugee crisis is scheduled to take place in Istanbul on March 17th, with the participation of Emmanuel Macron and Angela Merkel, the Τurkish president has announced.

Εmployees working at the Asylum Service, are holding a protest at 11am at Syntagma Square.

And the weather forecast…

Sunny in Attica this morning with the temperature expected to reach a high of 16 degrees Celsius.

More news in brief tomorrow morning at 9.