brent: this is "d.w. news" live from berlin. tonight, britain's prime minister boris johnson battling the coronavirus in intensive care. johnson was admitted to a l.p. - london hospital on sunday because his symptoms were not going away. tonight he's reportedly conscious, receiving oxygen support. we'll go live to london for more. germany's chancellor says it's too early to talk about exiting any of the lockdowns. angela merkel says the pandemic is the biggest test the european

union has faced but promised to do all she can to ensure the e.u. emerges stronger from the crisis. and -- a a cry for help from a woman in jordan renews concerns around the globe over domestic violence. many vicmsms s suffer in silence and in isolation. what's being done to help them? ♪ brent: i'm brent goff. to our viewers on pbs in the united states and around the world, welcome. we have breaking news this hour. britain's prime minister, boris johnson, has been moved to intensive care in a london hospital after his coronavirus symptoms worsened. johnson was taken to the hospital over the weekend. he tweeted earlier today that he was in good spirits and that he was in touch with his cabinet.

the 55-year-old is i in st. thomas' hospitatal acrososse river from the houses of parliament. he tested positite for the coronavirus 10 days ago. for more, let's go to our correspondent in london. what more can you tell us about the prime minister's condition? reporter: boris johnson was brought to st. thomas' hospital on sunday night because he had persistent symptoms of coronavirus such as a high fever and continuous cough. do youdowning street made sure y this was a precautionary measure and he would receive routine testing there and apparently this afternoon downing street said that his condition worsened and he has been moved to intensive care. before that, boris johnson was in self-isolation after testing positive for approximately 10 days in downing street and we

last saw him last thursday. he made sure to send out video updates out of his self-isolation. but we last saw him on thursday when he was clapping for the national health service and shortly came out in front of his apartment in downing street and he looked very sick there and we imagined that he would receive ventilation and oxygen support now in the hospital. we know he is 55 and he was in good health condition before this, before he contracted the virus. but it goes to show that coronavirus doesn't discriminate. brent: very true. these 10 days since he was tested, it fits the pattern we've seen with how quickly the virus can make the condition of a person deteriorate. we understand that boris johnson is conscious at this hour. who is in charge of the country this hour?

reporter: there clearly has been lack of leadership in the past 10 days when he was in self-isolation, although downing street insisted that boris johnson was able to take care of the government's response to the virus. now he has already -- there's no clear line of succession in the u.k. or other countries who would take over if the prime minister is incapacitated. in the beginning of the crisis, downing street said the foreign secretary, dominic raab, would take over and work as his deputy. he will step in from tonight. he has been briefed on all matters and hopefully will be able to bring the government together because there has been a lot of in-fighting since boris johnson fell ill to the virus. brent: we certainly are concerned this evening about boris johnson's pregnant

fiancee. what's the latest on her? we understand she had symptoms but has not been tested. do we know any more? reporter: she left downing street shortly after boris johnson tested positive. she developed symptoms while she was in her apartment in south london, self-isolating. she's expecting a child from boris johnson in early summer but apparently she is on the mend, as she tweeted. she did not r receiveve testing because this is the common procedure here in the u.k. only severe -- cases at hospitat tested. so many people don't know if they already had the virus and are self-isolating at the home so the unrecorded number of cases is likely to be much higher here. brent: disturbing news tonight from london.

charlotta, thank you. here in germany today, chancellor angela merkel offered help in the pandemic. she says that germany is ready to help the european union to return to economic health once the pandemic is over. she says it's in germany's interests that europe emerge strongly from what she's calling the biggest test the european union has seen. but she says it is too early to think of lifting the lockdown and her government has announced a two-week quarantine on anyone returning to germany from abroad. >> back in the chancellery, after two weeks in quarantine and three negative coronavirus tests, german chancellor angela merkel made her return. >> in my opinion, europe, the european union, is facing its biggest test since its foundation. our populations are also facing a huge health challenge. all the e.u. member states are

affected on varying levels. we're all affected. and so it must be in everyone's interest and it is in germany's interest that europe should emerge strongly from this test. as merkel voiced concerns for europe on monday, her government crisis group agreed to institute a two-week quarantine for people returning to germany. from april 10, all german nationals, e.u. citizens and other long-time residents who return after several dayays abrd will will have to quarantine themselves for 14 days. there are, however, exceptions, including seasonal workers in agriculture, commuters traveling to work, truck drivers delivering goods, and, of course, medical professionals. germany also announced on monday the latest extension to its 1.1

trillion euro coronavirus crisis package, a guarantee of 100% loans to small and medium size businesses of up to 800,000 euros. these companies are widely seen as the heart of the german company. >> anyone who was economically active last year, those who registered turnover, those who recorded normal economic activity and made a profit, they can get three months turnover as a loan from the bank which in this case will be 100% financially underwritten by us. that means the banks will not have to do normal financial risk assessments. this 100% guarantee means the process will be completed very quickly. reporter: now, germany's european neighbors, too, are looking to berlin to see whether merkel's concerns will also turn

into financial support for them. brent: let's bring in melinda crane. good evening to you. we've heard the chancellor today calling this pandemic the biggest crisis the european union has ever faced. italy and spain, they're struggling with it. we know there is a lot of anti-e.u. sentiment. we've seen what was done in hungary. is pressure increasing on germany to do more, to help more than it normally would? >> absolutely it is. and the chancellor's remarks this afternoon amounted to an attempt to prepare germans for the idea that they will need to support other e.u. member countries even while their own economy is taking a hit. as she put it, germany only does well when the e.u. does well and she said that we will need to see more european solidarity coming out of this crisis. she outlined a couple of different mechanisms by which the e.u. can provide exceptional

assistance in times of crisis that compare essentially to a natural cats see -- catastrophet what she did not mention is the instrument spain and italy have been pushing the hardest, corona bonds, amounting to a mutualization of debt in which stronger northern economies would be partly responsible for the debt of weaker member states. but that was quite noticeable in the fact that she omitted that instrument. brent: there's a taboo that remains taboo. there is a lot of talk about a possible exit strategy from the lockdowns we're seeing across europe. reporters asked about that today in london and also here in berlin. the german chancellor is not giving reporters what they wanted to hear, is she? >> she said she we remiss, the government would be remiss if they were not thinking day and night about how to lift the very tough restrictions that they

have imposed and she said you can be assured that we are doing that and yet with all concern for the economic consequences, public health must come first and will continue to come first and she said that while germany has made some progress in reducing the rate of reproduction of the virus, the rate in which the new infections occur, she said we're not where we need to be and we'll notot lt restrictions until we are so she basically let germans know the restrictions will remain in place at least until the middle of next week and she said when they are lifted, it will be a step-by-step process and we will be saying for some time that we are still living in the midst of pandemic. brent: for the time being, we're still worried about nurses and doctors having enough protective equipment, facemasks, for example. what's the situation in germany tonight? >> she had a couple of things to say about that.

she said we need to see greater european self issue self-sufficy in the production of personal protection equipment. she also said that while germany had improved its procurement of masks and other such goods, it still wasn't where it wanted to be and of course we have seen diversions of shipments of masks to this country. and finally she said that with all due consideration for the wearing of masks, the fact is the key measure to take remains social distancing and she said if you do decide to use a mask, be aware that it's very important to keep it clean, it's very important to change it. so very detailed instructions from the chancellor on that point. brent: melinda, thank you. tonight we take you to one of the front lines in the battle against the coronavirus. the western germantown of

heinzbear, the first german community to report infection. scientists say area carnival celebrations in late february are probably when the virus was seeded in germany. tonight it is home to 1400 confirmed cases. >> a protective mask is vital here. intensive care nurse alexandra webb and her team are required to wear gloves and protective overcoat when they treat covid-19 patients. one of the patients in the isololation u unit is severely l and has been given artificial respiration. a coronavirus infectionon can ld to fight for survival.l. with intensive care patients, you're supposed to be ready f fr emergency 24/7, on the alert, around the clock. i believe the disease is simply unpredictable.

she hears the constant beeping sound throughout her working day. right now, there are six coronavirus patients in the intensive care unit. the nurses here are working up to 20 hours of overtime every week but despite all efforts, they sometimes losee patientntsd this can be t tough. >> we feel powerless. stand there and donon't know how to t treat thehem. there haven't been anyny p propr studieie this iss something totally new. we do o our best but sometimes it's notot e enough. >> alexandra webb and her colleagues have put together an emergency plan in case of more patients. she knows her team must persevere. people need them like never before. brent: here are some of the other coronavirus headlines making news this hour.

wuhan's skyline has been lit up in tribute to the city's healthcare workers. once the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, the chinese city has begun to reopen as authorities ease restrictions that kept its 11 million residents on lockdown. kenya has increased restrictions across the c country in a bid to stem the virus' spread, including travel bans in and out of nairobi. the country has more than 150 cases off coronavirus and six deaths. more than 10,000 people have now died from coronavirus infections in the united states. andrew cuomo, the goverernor of new york, says the number of hospitalizations and deaths is now plateauing. he has extended the lockdown in the state to the 29th of april. oil prices fell sharply after saudi arabia and russia postponed talks to cut production today at a time when the coronavirus pandemic has

greatly weakened demand. brent crude fell by as much as 12% as markets open for the week but have regained a little bit of ground. the oil market is expected to remain volatile. traders were unsettled after a meeting of the world's biggest oil producers to reduce supply and prop up prices was pushed from monday to thursday. in the united states, president trump has hinted he may use tariffs to try to force both sides to reach a deal. for more now, let's go to our wall street correspondent who joins me from new york. good afternoon to you. why is donald trump so eager to see russia and saudi arabia back at the negotiating table? reporter: with oil prices in the 20's, it's just not sustainable for a lot of the u.s. fracking companies to keep operating. there are some estimates that actually half of the frackers in

the united states are in jeopardy. last week, by the way, there was some hope that there would be a deal between saudi arabia and russia. that's why oil prices last week increased more than 30%. it was the best week for oil prices ever. so now there is another question mark, if that deal is going to get reached. if tariffs will really work at this point is quite debatable. brent: we are starting a new week. stocks rally today on wall street. what is moving investors? >> it was a huge day for the stock market. blue chips increasing almost 8%. there is some hope at least that the rate of new corona cases is slowing inin the united states. having that said, there are other analysts, citigroup, for example, out here on monday, saying that global earnings could get cut in half in the second quarter and the same

could happen to stock prices, that's at least what citi analysts are saying so it's a wild up-and-down but everybody knows that the economic impact either way will be tremendous. so it's far too early to call the bottom of the stock market as of yet. brent: the latest from new york, thank you very much. the number of domestic abuse calls have shot up 25% in the u.k. since the country began its lockdown to slow the coronavirus. the u.k. is not an outlier. around the world, lockdowns have exposed a category of vulnerable people to what they fear most -- domestic abuse. a report on thee women locked in with their abusesers. reporter: : a desperate call for help. >> due to t the coronavirus, f m day one of being in home

quarantitine, i have faced violence and blackmail from my family to give them money. reporter: imana is a jordanian single mother living with her family. she says long-standing abuse by her mother and brother have gotten worse under covid-19 restrictions. >> today they were goingng to seriously injure me. when i tried to call the police, all of the lines were busy because of corona. reporter: her 18-minute long live video on facebook went viral overnight prompting outrage. a local n.g.o. moved her and her son to a temporary safe house. city family protective services and the ministry of interior are looking into her case. jojordan is among the countries

that imposed a tough coronavirus curfew. the move forced many families into isolation together. >> because of the curfew, victims a are also unablble to mitigate and manage to avoid violence against them. in normal t times, they would be able to go to school, to university, to go to work, to visit their families. so they have more freedom to get away from the violator. reporter: it is not just jordan that faces an increase of domestic violence under the restrictions. activists in brazil, germany and italy have sounded t the a alar. in china's hubei province, t the initial epipicenter of the pandemic, reported cases of domestic violence in one county more than tripled during the lockdown, according to activists. the regional government said calls to its helpline rose by 20% in the first few days of the confinemement period. >> i am s speaking o out so that

evevery woman in my situation speaks out. they should not be ashamed. i know there are many women in this situation. reporter: she may be in safety now w but she hopes other women will reach out for help, despite the social stigma. brent: a disturbing story there. to talk more about it, i'm jojoined from malta by marsalean maututa, a spokesperson for a monitoring group on domestic violence. what can women do right now? if they're living in lockdown, how can they escape the abubuset home? >> well, this i is an area of great concern for all of u us wo work i in this field. i mean, while we appreciate the importance of preventionn and containment of traransformation- transmsmission o of i infectione

must acknowledge thatt womomen d children are feeling lockeked dn in a limimited spapa with their abusers. many of them may be feeling desperate, doing their best to survive e and protect their children in anyny way theyy can. wewe need toto be awarere that e restrictions on movement offer abusers additional power and cocontrol. but i think we a also need to be clear, l lockdownn does n not ma complete prohibition too go o ot on to the s streets. for example, the frerench government has made this repeated clear, saying that stayininat home too help fight th c coronavirus d does not mean thatat one is not free to leaven abusivive situation so people cn leave. however,r, it is n not always tt simple, is it? brent: no. >> what can we -- brent: it's not that simple and i think it's getting the attentio of a lolot of people. today the secretary general at

the u.n. asked governments to protect women against abuse. if it gets to that level, then it makes us wonder, are governments around the world, are they failing women in their response to this cririsis? > well, i think that manany governments arouound the w worle grgrappling with the situation which is constantly a and rapidy chananging. it defefinitely c challenging to say the least. for example, one good exampmples categorizingng the vioiolence against women s svices as essentialervices which means they have t to continunue being provided even d during lockdown but funding for the services is alalso ver essential. in f fact, our report issued earlier today menentions this issue, that the number of spececialist support servicecesr victims of violence i is still insuffieient. the funding for the specialist

services i is extremely volatil. soso at thihis momenent even n n ever we need a adequate funding that w will coverot only normal needs but, as well, extraordinary needsds creatatedy ththis situationon to enable tho continue to providede essential servicices but still keep everybodody, women, c children,d staff, of course, safe.e. brent: president of thehe groupf experts on action against violence, against women, and domestic violence. we appreciate your time tonight. you're doing very, valuable work. thankk you. >> thank you. brent: germany's bundesliga clubs are desperate to finish their seasons to ensure they get television revenues even if that means playing matches without fans. these so-called ghost games won't help lower league clubs, many of them amateur, who depend

on ticket sales to survive. here's more. >> this is the fourth tier of german football. theyey're printing tickets for a game that will never be played. this fund-raising effort is helping but won't cover one missed match. the semi professionanal club is losing50,000 euros for everyry game that doesn't take place. inin the event the season is canceleled, the league'e's prest has a radical idea. >> as far as the third and fourth leagues are concerneded,e should think of creating a an expanded t third league for the biggest clubs and making the fourth league purely for amateur teams. reporter: in the fifth tier, the players train twice a week at home. the coach checks progress on an app. these players have led their team to the top of the league. if their promotion is jeopardized, the club's vice

president, also a lawyer, is considering legal action. >> we wouldn't accept it if our success and likely promotion was taken away from us. reporter: at this level, promotion and relegation is a question for the german football federation, dfb. > i think it'ss problematic o have a solution where teams only get promoted and not relegegate. we don't even know whether we'll be able to start the season with the normal amount of teams. reporter: some amateur clubs in germany have been able to claim state support but even that might not be enough to guarantee their survival. brent: golfing news, the 2020 british open has been canceled in wake of the coronavirus pandemic. it's the first time since the second world war. the open was slated to take place this july. it has now been pushed back to next year.

and here is a reminder of the top story we're following. britain's prime minister, boris johnson, is in intensive care tonight, battling the coronavirus at a london hospital. earlier today he tweeted he was in good spirits but his condition worsened. johnson is said to be conscious and receiving oxygen support. your watching "d.w. news." after a short break, i'll be back to take you through "the day." uk prime minister boris

johnson has been moved into intensive care after his health worsened on monday the pm as us foreign secretary dominic raab to deputise him for the time being. eighhundred anand thirty three tests in france a new record highs cove in nineteen continues its free french authorities warned that the fight is far from over after monday's told this is encouraging data the previous day. and in austria the government and to relax coronavirus restrictions starting next week johnson is