The Wisconsin Democratic primary remains on schedule despite COVID-19 fears, coronavirus-hit Wuhan lifts outbound travel restrictions and time is up for Israel's Benny Gantz to form a government. 

Wisconsin primary moves ahead amid COVID-19 fears 

Wisconsin officials are moving forward with the planned April 7 presidential primary election even though reported COVID-19 cases are drastically increase in the state. 

Read more: Democrats delay presidential convention until August, citing COVID-19

U.S. District Judge William Conley ruled that holding Tuesday's nomination contest during the pandemic would create an "unprecedented burdens" for voters and poll workers but it was not appropriate for a federal court to delay the statewide election. 

Conley, in a 53-page ruling, extended the deadline for absentee ballots to be requested by voters from Thursday to Friday, and extended the deadline for completed ballots to be received by local election officials by six days: from April 7 to April 13. 

The pandemic has disrupted the Democratic race to pick a challenger for Republican President Donald Trump in the Nov. 3 U.S. election, knocking front-runner Joe Biden and rival Bernie Sanders off the campaign trail and forcing more than a dozen other states to delay or adjust their primaries to limit the health risks. 

Virus-hit Wuhan lifts outbound travel restriction 

Wuhan, the Chinese city hardest hit by the novel coronavirus outbreak, will lift outbound travel restrictions from April 8 after over two months of lockdown. 

People in Wuhan will be allowed to leave the city and Hubei Province, where Wuhan is the capital, if they have a green health code, meaning they had no contact with any infected or suspected COVID-19 cases, according to a circular issued by the provincial COVID-19 control headquarters. 

Wuhan will take differentiated measures to promote the resumption of business operations based on the health risks of different regions to mitigate the impact on the economy, the circular said. 

Gantz's term as Israel's prime minister-designate ends 

On April 12, Blue and White chairman Benny Gantz's allocated time to form a government that he would head comes to an end. 

Netanyahu's Likud won 36 Knesset seats in the March 2 election to Blue and White's 33, but the Likud leader's right-wing bloc again failed to muster a parliamentary majority. In consultations with President Reuven Rivlin, Gantz won 61 MKs' recommendation that he form a government, including from the entire Joint List of majority-Arab parties. 

Israel's president, Reuven Rivlin, has been urging the two leaders to form a unity deal. 

Day by day: 

Monday: EU ministers have justice meetings via video.

Tuesday: Video conference of the Eurogroup meeting kicks off in Brussels; World Health Organization observes World Health Day; Democrats hold presidential primary in Wisconsin. 

Wednesday: Virus-hit Wuhan lifts outbound travel restrictions; Video conference of EU foreign ministers meeting begins in Brussels; Ninth anniversary of signing a bilateral treaty between Russia and the U.S. on the Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms, START-2 (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty). 

Thursday: Iran's health ministry spokesman holds press conference on the COVID-19 pandemic.

Friday: DPRK's Supreme People's Assembly meets. 

Saturday: Three months since China's announcement of first new coronavirus death; First anniversary of Sudan's Omar al-Bashir's ouster; 75th anniversary of liberation of Buchenwald Nazi concentration camp. 

Sunday: Deadline for Israel's ex-military chief Benny Gantz to form a government. 

(With input from agencies)