For Fr Rafic, the emergency triggered by the pandemic "is bringing Christians and Muslims closer”. Family members call each other; young people bring medicines and help to their elders. The government has taken steps to counter the pandemic. Churches (and mosques) have been closed. The Internet and social media are the venue for maintaining social ties and following religious services.

Migrants live crammed into 43 dormitories. Some 500 dorm residents have been infected, a quarter of all cases in the country. Some 24,000 people are under observation. The pandemic hit two dormitories. What is happening in the city-state could happen in other countries in Asia and Africa.

Prices only grew 4.3 per cent in March. Without foreign demand, Chinese products go unsold. Maritime container shipping dropped by 20 to 30 per cent. For analysts, China's GDP will decline by 6 per cent in the first quarter. The OPEC-Russia agreement won’t help Chinese manufacturing.

The case in the government-controlled southern province of Hadramawt involves a port employee, who is in stable conditions. Saudi Arabia’s unilateral truce has been in effect since yesterday. For the Vicar of Arabia, COVID-19 might paradoxically have a "positive effect" for the conflict.

This morning the Archbishop of Bombay led the Way of the Cross in the cathedral. The relic is a gift from the city of Brescia and the family of Paul VI. Maharashtra is the Indian state most affected by the coronavirus outbreak with 1,364 cases and 97 deaths.

This year's Meditations were written by 14 people associated with the correctional system, in particular the Due Palazzi prison in Padua. The cross was carried alternately by members of the prison and by doctors and staff from the Vatican Health and Hygiene Directorate. The Pope did not deliver a homily, but gave room for silence before the crucifix of San Marcello.