A Michael Oconnor its good to have you with us the Italian Government has put roughly a quarter of its population under quarantine in a bid to stop a rapidly expanding outbreak of the coronavirus prime ministers decepticon today signed a decree after midnight the lockdown affects the region of lombardy and other northern provinces and includes then italys Financial Capital milan italys been hit with the most known corona virus infections in europe the governments most recent figures show 7375 confirmed cases 366 people have died the lock down is the most drastic measure yet taken in a european country to try to contain the violence. Milan italys vibrant financial heart turned into a ghost town lumber d. Is the countrys most populous region its also where the corona virus has hit the hardest putting hospitals under strain and the government under increasing pressure to take a drastic measure as. Part of the the. Body and the other northern provinces that i have listed people will be banned from entering or leaving these territories or travelling within the territories. And. Just removing exceptions will only be allowed for proven professional needs. Exceptional cases and for medical reasons. The decree doesnt only restrict travel people in lockdown zones are also advised to cut down on social activities and stay home as much as possible. And restaurants in the lock down area must close by 6 pm Schools Cinemas museums and gyms are closed nationwide those who do not respect the measures could face jail terms and fines news of the imminent quarantine set off a last minute rush to beat the clock in line and in other cities people race to train stations trying to get out before it was too late. For that because i read 2 hours ago that they may be putting out an urgent decree putting pot away in the red zone and because id like to return down south to my relatives i decided to go earlier the virus is forcing people to change their lifestyles its also taking a toll on italys economy the Tourism Sector is one of the most affected easter one of the peak times is about a month away and reports are that as many as 90 percent of visitors have cancelled it trips. Joining us now from rome is she is an n. P. N. Member of italys ko Ruling Democratic Party so thankful you can make some time for us i want to start by asking you this in the last 24 hours weve seen a 25 percent rise in the number of infections in italy what do you make of this why some. Cases are calming oxidation as you you would say im not a doctor but i mean out but i. Do see is. Going like that we were expecting it and thats why the government has taken stricter pressure off not you know wonderful if i was not heard there. Now you yourself come from lumbar lumber day which is one of the regions on lockdown what have you been hearing about the situation on the ground from people you know why do doctors and. People are kicking the can be last night very serious need. Also issues are getting organized in order for people to work and home from tomorrow on markets and everybody is getting organized in order not to go house less they just brought in or or are they have maybe found or emergency or marriage and so you know and the other times. People are watching whats going on in italy and they are dreading that this is what might happen where they have lived i cant imagine what the psychological impact this must be on you for example individually and just collectively for the people in italy can you give us some sense of how this is affecting people. Well everyone in striving to decide whether what they do is necessary or full size thats main thing that were always thinking so actions that you would do on a norm on sunday nights like go out with your friends go and its your problem you need to insert money and says its becoming unnecessary and you should stay at home were all wondering and pondering and thinking about peace in my situation for example of id i represent its the 1st time in 7 years that i dont go back to me don over the weekend because my house is yet you call me person i 3 school my sister is due shes pregnant shes due in a few days i want to meet my new nephew im to imagine seeing goes away because i cannot go into that zone but i think all of us all of us i dont where on the fact that these measures are taken for what i thought a great a good that is are doing to stop the device from spreading further you mention the red zone i mean there are clearly fears at this point that hospitals in the red zone are already on the verge of collapse how bad is the situation right now. Well theyre out of fuel hosty touching down bodies that are in a difficult situation because theyre smaller hospital in smaller provinces but im she now the situation is not dire is not under verge of collapse collapse it could collapse in 2 weeks thats why the government today the measure that it took for him nor is there for those hospitals not to collapse in 2 weeks that coping that of course on the pressure of the entire systems on the question but we just spent. One does in your words in order to imply 20000 has workers and in order to increase by 50 percent the number of intensive care unit places so i mean were doing everything we can in order to avoid the collapse that is not knowledge but it can come in the future that or they can but it just doesnt go on. Keep going out as we need to stop the labor contagion to to keep going up we need to subsidize this among make it go down we can do it weve seen it has worked behind that and cleaned up for people to stay at home it can work thank you very very much were quite a pilot n. P. N. Member of italys Democratic Party really appreciate your time thank you very much. The number of cases from the new current virus has surged above 107000 worldwide egypt reports the 1st death from corona virus according to the Health Ministry a German National which makes it the 1st german casualty in Germany Health minister spawn recommended canceling events with more than 1000. 00 participants in an effort to suppress the spread of the virus in the us a cruise ship hit by the virus is redirected to oakland possibly to be placed under quarantine saudi arabia and now it is a temporary lockdown of the region a center of the kingdoms shiite minority iran has also been hard hit by the krona virus Officials Say there are more than 6500 cases and 194 deaths so far but many iranian suspect the real numbers are much higher. A climate of mistrust and fear 2 weeks ago International Researchers predicted the number of infections would be many times higher than government figures. 100 lawmakers were tested for corona virus 20 of those tests came back positive one of Supreme Leader ayatollah ali how the names closest advisors later died as did other politicians theres a widespread shortage of medical supplies president Hassan Rouhani blames u. S. Sanctions on medicine a charge the u. S. Contests. Disinfectant masks their monitors basic medicines sick people and their relatives go from pharmacy to pharmacy looking for the essentials. A video uploaded to social media purports to show long lines outside a hospital but theres no way to verify its authenticity there are barely any foreign journalists left. Might also works in a hospital they forced to come to work many of her colleagues refuse to come even if it means theyll be following this infection the money on authorities have started disinfecting streets in the capital tehran schools and universities are closed until early april and nearly all flights in and out have been cancelled many are worried that the virus will wreak economic havoc in a country already stretched to the limits. A brief look now at some of the other stories making headlines around the world firefighters are continuing a search and rescue effort at a hotel they collapsed in the chinese city of kwan juve at least 10 people were killed and more than 20 others are still missing the 5 Story Building was being used as a quarantine facility for coronavirus patients. Hundreds have gathered at the site where Ethiopian Airlines flight 302 crashed last march killing all 157. 00 onboard the ceremony in the village of too far symbolize the countrys emergence from a year of mourning aviation authorities grounded the boeing 737. 00 max after the crash which came 5 months after a similar macs crashed off the coast of indonesia. Demonstrators have been holding rallies around the world to Mark International womens day in madrid thousands marched against gender inequality and exploitation and pocket sun some conservative groups tried to disrupt a rally by throwing shoes and stones in the capital islamabad but police prevented them from breaking through a cordon. As we continue to market International Womens day our next report comes from Northern Syria the region has seen fierce fighting between syrian troops and rebels backed by turkey the women living in this war zone face a daily challenge to ensure they and their children get through the day alive. My mouth paul stories heavily on her home in eastern guta was destroyed in fighting between Syrian Government forces and rebels her husband was killed in the war but shes not ready to give up no she works as a paramedic in a religious near the border with turkey. There is no life if we do not adapt we will feel depressed and Mental Health will deteriorate sometimes im tired sometimes im depressed but then i remember the old times we want to keep moving forward we want to overcome all difficulties and keep moving forward. Is that the one thing to. My knowledge has joined the White HelmetsCivil Defense organization that operates in parts of opposition held syria thousands of volunteers many of them women who work in areas not controlled by the assad regime since its foundation in 2013 more than 250 White Helmets have been killed in the conflict in the area along the border with turkey like here not me its dangerous not just for the white helmet volunteers the displaced syrians feel of an extremely difficult conditions often it is women and children who suffer the most. My husband died 5 years ago im raising 4 children alone the situation is very difficult we stay by the tents all day why is the situation like this things are very difficult especially for women here in the camp i will leave any subject a dictator. Even though also has to look after her children on her own she wants to keep volunteering with the White Helmets. I think many people would tell me to leave work and stay with my children i felt that just like my children need me there are people here who need me. There seems to be no responded from the enormous hardships suffered by many rimmon in the syrian conflict not even on International Womens day. Turning to sport now in the bundesliga leaders by in munich have beaten out to mail in the bavarian darby in front of 75000 fans to most mueller scored a superbly opener before leon gretzky grabbed a late 2nd buyer 4 points clear at the top minds drew 11 with dusseldorf in their relegation clash minds remain 4 points above dusseldorf who occupy the playoff spot. You are watching the news from berlin coming up next our documentary series reporter looks at restaurants own been run by women in morocco and dont forget you can always stay up to date on our website thats w dot com im Michael Okumu in berlin thanks for watching. International womens day. We tell the stories of women around the world. Right their struggles and standing staring. Hard for an independent selfdetermined life