The prime minister of Japan Shinzo Abe is getting ready to expand the state of emergency that the nation declared for seven of its 47 prefectures till now to the rest of the country in an attempt to contain the spread of the deadly novel coronavirus or COVID-19, the Yomiuri newspaper stated on Thursday.
Coronavirus in Japan
Abe declared the state of emergency for Tokyo, Osaka and five other prefectures accounting for about 44 percent of Japan's population on April 7, to last through May 6. The nationwide emergency would last for the same duration, the Yomiuri said.
The deadly virus outbreak has created massive havoc around the world claiming the lives of over 120,000 people and infecting more than two million people worldwide. The virus outbreak which originated from the Chinese city of Wuhan of Hubei province has spread to more than 170 countries. The WHO has described the outbreak as a pandemic.
(With agency inputs)
