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Modi apologizes to Indian citizens over lockdown

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi apologized to citizens for the sweeping 21-day lockdown that has brought the country of 1.3 billion people to a halt, leaving many migrant workers jobless and penniless.

"I believe that you will forgive me. I had to make some decisions which have inconvenienced you in various ways, especially my poor brothers and sisters," he said Sunday in a weekly radio address, arguing there was "no other way" to fight the virus.

Meanwhile, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal appealed to rural migrants not to go home after a massive exodus began from cities, with many workers making the long journeys on foot. "Stay where you are. Because there is a risk of corona spreading in such a big crowd," he tweeted.

The government ordered all of India’s states and territories to seal their borders to reduce the movement of people and said funds were available within each state to arrange food and shelter for migrants at their places of work.

Meanwhile, gatherings will be restricted to just two people in Australia from Monday -- down from the current limit of 10 -- and playgrounds, outdoor gyms, and skateparks will be closed across the country.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said all over-70s as well as indigenous people over 50, who are more susceptible to diseases, are now being strongly advised to self-isolate at home. This came as hundreds of cruise ship passengers were due to board flights for Germany after spending days stranded at sea off the Western Australian coast in a stand-off with authorities.

Meanwhile, New Zealand reported its first novel coronavirus death. Australia announced a nearly $100 million boost in funding to tackle domestic violence after support services reported a spike in coronavirus-related family abuse. Associations around the world that help victims of domestic violence have sounded the alarm over fears of an increase in cases, as the stress caused by social isolation exacerbates tensions.

Meanwhile, China reported 45 new coronavirus infections on Sunday, all but one of them imported from abroad. That compares with 54 cases the previous day, all imported.

Meanwhile, Saudi authorities have seized more than five million medical masks that were illegally stockpiled amid the coronavirus outbreak, state media reported Sunday, as the death toll in the kingdom doubled.

The commerce ministry seized 1.17 million masks from a private store in Hail, northwest of the capital, after authorities Wednesday confiscated more than four million masks stored in a facility in the western city of Jeddah in violation of commercial regulations, the official Saudi Press Agency reported.

The ministry said people behind such activities would be prosecuted, and that the confiscated masks would be redistributed to the open market.

Pharmacies in the oil-rich kingdom have reported shortages of masks amid panic buying, as authorities warned against hoarding and price hikes.

The kingdom´s health ministry on Sunday said the death toll from the COVID-19 disease had doubled to eight as cumulative infections rose from 1,203 to 1,299 -- the highest in the Gulf region.

Riyadh has imposed a nationwide partial curfew, barred entry and exit from the capital as well as Islam´s two holiest cities Makkah and Medina and prohibited movement between all provinces.

King Salman warned last week of a "more difficult" fight ahead against the virus, as the kingdom faces the economic double blow of virus-led shutdowns and crashing oil prices.

Meanwhile, the Saudi Ministry of Interior said the curfew will be extended to start at 3 pm local time from Sunday, March 29, state news agency SPA reported.

Movement from and into Jeddah will also be suspended. These movement restrictions do not include groups previously exempt from the curfew. For more information about excluded groups, people can call 999, while residents of the Makkah region can call 911. The measures are part of the Kingdom’s continued efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Meanwhile, the United Arab Emirates has launched a drive-through coronavirus testing facility as part of the Gulf state´s efforts to fight the disease, the Abu Dhabi government´s media office announced.

The facility, inaugurated by Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, will provide safe screenings within five minutes, using state-of-the-art equipment and a highly-qualified medical team, it said. "A new drive-through testing facility for COVID-19 has launched to offer safe testing procedures," the office said on Twitter Saturday.

According to official state news agency WAM, the facility can serve 600 people a day, with priority given to senior citizens, pregnant women and those with chronic illnesses. The government media office said people should book an appointment in advance. Tests "for the wider community for reassurance only" would cost 370 dirhams ($100), according to government advice on Twitter.

Meanwhile, Iranian security forces are searching for 54 escaped inmates following a prison break over which four guards were arrested, Iran´s state news agency reported on Sunday.

"Some prison guards were summoned and four of them were arrested and others released on bail," Mojtaba Shirouzbozorgi, a judicial official in Kurdistan province, told IRNA. According to the agency, 74 inmates escaped from Saqqez city´s prison on Friday, 20 of whom have so far either turned themselves in or been captured. On March 19, 23 prisoners escaped from another jail in the western city of Khorramabad, the capital of Lorestan province, hours before the start of Iran´s New Year celebrations, IRNA said. They reportedly escaped during the night while guards were making preparations for a New Year amnesty.

The escapees had been serving a maximum of one-year sentences, the agency said, denying that dangerous criminals were at large.

There were also prison riots in Hamedan and Tabriz provinces, and Aligoudarz city in Lorestan as authorities prevented escapes. Hamedan´s prosecutor told IRNA that the unrest there was "over the excuse of the coronavirus outbreak."

One inmate died and another was injured at the riot in Aligoudarz prison. Around 10,000 prisoners are expected to be released in the New Year amnesty, according to Iran´s judiciary.