Coronavirus - 9th April

Summary for Thursday, 9th April

   -  Confirmed coronavirus cases around the world near 1.5 million, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University
   -  Almost 90,000 people have died with the virus
   -  The European Union risks failing as a project in the crisis, Italy's PM tells the BBC
   -  UK PM Boris Johnson remains in intensive care but condition "improving"
   -  The World Health Organization has defended itself after criticism from Donald Trump
   -  "We're close to every nation," says its head after "China-centric" accusations

Welcome back to our rolling coverage of the coronavirus outbreak. We'll be bringing you all the latest developments throughout today, but first, here are some of the headlines:

• US President Donald Trump has not backed down on his criticism of the WHO. In a press briefing, he said they had to "get [their] priorities right". He had previously accused the organisation of being "China-centric" and said they "really blew" their pandemic response
  
• But the head of the WHO dismissed his comments, saying "we are close to every nation, we are colour blind". He also called for an end to the "politicisation" of Covid-19
  
• Over in Australia, police are investigating why a cruise ship allowed sick passengers to disembark in downtown Sydney. Officers entered the Ruby Princess and seized the cruise's black box
  
• In the UK, Prime Minister Boris Johnson remains in intensive care but is "improving"
  

What’s the latest in Australia?

Good morning from Sydney, where the focus once again is on the Ruby Princess cruise ship - the source of one-tenth of the 6,000 cases in Australia.

• Police boarded the vessel, currently south of Sydney, last night and seized its black box as part of an investigation into whether the ship's operator failed its duty of care to passengers. About 2,700 people were allowed to freely disembark last month. Since then, 15 passengers have died
  
• Lawmakers yesterday passed a mammoth A$130b (£65bn; $80bn) wage subsidy package – the biggest financial lifeline in the nation’s history
  

• Ahead of a four-day Easter long weekend, officials are urging people to stick to the rules, stay home and avoid travelling to holiday spots
  
• But a government minister in New South Wales, the worst-hit state, has been found doing just that after retreating from his Sydney home to a holiday house on the coast
  

Infections spike in Singapore

Singapore has long been somewhat of "poster boy" for keeping the virus in check.
Numbers were low and so were the daily increases. On Wednesday though, the city state registered its highest daily increase since the outbreak began.
There were 142 new positive tests - many in foreign worker dormitories - bringing the total to more than 1,600. Six people have died so far.
The latest numbers confirm an upward trend, and the government's response has got tougher.
In a move labelled a "circuit breaker", all non-essential businesses were closed from Tuesday. Then just yesterday, all social get-togethers were banned.
I've been working from home for weeks now. Just down from my balcony is a playground, and it's always busy with kids every morning.
Today, it's cordoned off and the little park is quiet - except for the chirping of birds in the trees.

Two deaths in China's Hubei

Two deaths from China's Hubei province, where the virus epicentre of Wuhan is located, were reported on Wednesday, said the country's National Health Commission.
It comes a day after Wuhan lifted a lockdown that has been in place for almost three months.
63 new confirmed cases - 61 of which were imported - and 56 asymptomatic cases were also reported.
There are now 81,865 confirmed cases across China.

First virus case among Brazil's indigenous Yanomami

Brazil has confirmed the first case of the virus among the indigenous Yanomami. The ethnic group living in remote parts of the rainforest are known for already being vulnerable to foreign diseases.
"We have to be triply cautious with (indigenous) communities, especially the ones that have very little contact with the outside world," Health Minister Luiz Henrique Mandetta said.
The patient is a 15-year-old boy and he's being treated in the intensive care unit at a hospital, officials said.
The country has now confirmed at least seven coronavirus cases among the indigenous population, according to local media. Brazil is home to an estimated 800,000 indigenous people from more than 300 ethnic groups. The first virus case was among the Kokama a week ago.
Overall, Brazil has more than 14,000 confirmed cases and almost 700 deaths.

Cruise ship's black box 'seized for investigation'

As we've mentioned there's been a dramatic development in the story of the Ruby Princess cruise ship.
It has been linked to 15 deaths since it docked in Sydney on 19 March. With more than 600 confirmed cases, it is Australia's largest single source of infections.
Police have begun a criminal investigation into how 2,700 passengers were allowed to disembark. This morning, they confirmed the ship's black box had been seized.
"Ships have a black box very similar to that of international planes and that and other evidence has been seized for further investigation," said New South Wales Police Commissioner Mick Fuller.
The investigation will look into "discrepancies" in information provided by ship's operator, Carnival Australia. There are questions, too, over how much blame should fall on state and federal authorities.
More than 1,000 crew members remain aboard - 200 have flu-like symptoms, and 18 have tested positive for the virus.

US deaths exceed 14,600

The US recorded nearly 2,000 coronavirus deaths for a second day in a row, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.
It was the highest one-day toll on record with 1,973 deaths - the day before had seen a death toll of 1,939 deaths, according to news agency AFP.
The US now has 14,695 deaths and 431,838 confirmed virus cases making it the worst affected country globally.

The situation across Asia

For those of you reading in Asia, here are the developments we are watching:

• in Japan, Tokyo has seen its biggest daily jump since the beginning of the outbreak, and the spike comes just after the capital and other large cities declare a state of emergency
  
• South Korea has reported its fewest daily cases since late February. The 39 positive tests in the past day are down from 53 the previous day. At the peak of its crisis, South Korea had 909 new cases on 29 February
  
• Singapore has seen its highest daily increase with 142 new cases
  
• Thailand says it will automatically extend visas for all foreigners. Many of them currently can not leave the country and authorities want to prevent long queues at immigration centres
  
• in East Timor, the prime minister has withdrawn his resignation so he can oversee the fight against the pandemic. He had announced his resignation earlier this year after failing to pass the annual budget.
  

Bolsonaro says 'get back to work'

Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro has once again called on Brazil to get back to work, going against advice by his own Health Ministry – and most of the rest of the world – to stop work and remain indoors.
Speaking on national television, he said his goal was to save lives in what he called a war against coronavirus.
He no longer referred to the virus as a little flu, but continued to distance himself from the drastic measures being taken by local governments such as school and business closures, making the point that the consequences of treatment cannot be more damaging than the disease itself.
Unemployment he said, also leads to poverty, hunger, misery and even death.
He went on to praise the use of hydroxychloroquine, a drug that has not yet been proven as an effective treatment of coronavirus.
Mr Bolsonaro added that he hoped Brazil would come out of this stronger and more unified but the message from the top is still confusing – should people stay indoors or get back to work?
One thing is clear though – he doesn’t want to take any responsibility for what will be a massive economic hit to the country.

Crude oil gains in Asia ahead of Opec meeting

Crude oil posted initial gains in Asia on Thursday.
It comes as the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) and its allies will meet online to hammer out proposed massive cuts in production to counter a slump in demand caused by coronavirus lockdowns.
Global benchmark Brent oil rose 2.5%, to $33.65 in early Asian trade after gains overnight on hopes for a deal to cut as much as 10m to 15m barrels a day, or 10% to 15% of global output.An Opec+ (Opec plus other producers led by Russia) meeting in early March failed to agree on oil production cuts, causing a split that sent prices crashing.
Saudi Arabia and Russia then moved to boost production in order to retain market share amid the falling global demand.
Key Opec member Saudi Arabia pushed hard for deep cuts in March, while Russia complained that US shale producers who didn't curb output would unfairly benefit. The standoff saw US President Donald Trump seek to broker a deal as the world's largest producer and a top importer as well.

Signs of hope from South Korea

South Korea has reported its lowest number of new coronavirus cases in seven weeks.
Only 39 new cases of Covid-19 were confirmed over the past 24 hours - 23 of which were related to overseas arrivals.
Of this number, only 4 were confirmed to have come from Daegu, the city which was once at the heart of the country's outbreak.
South Korea has used an aggressive tracing and testing strategy to curb the pandemic.
No part of the country was ever placed in lockdown. Health officials are urging people to maintain social distancing measures until 19 April in the hope of reducing the number of cases even further.
The total number of cases across the country now stands at 10,423, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Rohingya camp under lockdown

Bangladesh has imposed a lockdown at the Cox's Bazar refugee camp which houses more than a million Rohingya who have fled from Myanmar.
The top government administrator in Cox's Bazar, said foreigners have been banned from frequent visits to the camps unless absolutely necessary.
He explained that with the help of the WHO, they were currently setting up isolation wards and makeshift hospitals at the camps.
Authorities are also training community health workers, distributing soap and trying to raise awareness on how to prevent the virus from taking hold.
There's fear that an outbreak in the camps would be almost impossible to contain as the refugees live in cramped spaces and very poor conditions.

US could shatter jobless record - again

US jobless figures could be about to hit a new record. On Thursday morning, the Department of Labor will release its latest data on unemployment claims.
JPMorgan Chase analysts expect the statistics to show that as many as seven million people applied for benefits in the week to 4 April. That would surpass the previous week’s record of 6.6 million, which was double the one from the week before.
In yet more grim economic news, nearly one third of US residential tenants (31%) did not manage to pay their rent in the first week of April, according to data from the National Multifamily Housing Council on Wednesday.

'Every number is a face' - NY governor Cuomo

New York state remains the worst-hit part of the US and in the past day has suffered its biggest death toll so far with 779 deaths linked to the virus.
The number of confirmed cases in the state alone approached 150,000 on Wednesday.
Governor Andrew Cuomo has ordered flags flown at half-mast across the state, to respect the dead.
"Every number is a face," he said. "This virus attacked the vulnerable and attacked the weak and it's our job as a society to protect the vulnerable."
The governor said a drop in new hospitalisations and other data suggested the state was "bending the curve" and gaining some control over the infection rate but warned the death rate would continue to be high for the coming days.

US national stockpile nearly out of PPE

The Strategic National Stockpile is almost out of N95 respirators, surgical masks, face shields, gowns and other medical supplies for front-line medical workers, says a report from the Associated Press.   The US Department of Health and Human Services told AP that it was in the process of deploying all remaining personal protective equipment (PPE) in its inventory.
It confirmed statements that showed about 90% of PPE in the stockpile had already been distributed to state and local governments.
The remaining 10% will be kept in reserve to support "federal response efforts", said a spokeswoman.

A timeline of the deadly Ruby Princess cruise ship

The Ruby Princess seen floating off the Sydney coastline last week



The decision to allow passengers off the infected vessel in Sydney last month has now sparked a police investigation. At least 15 deaths are tied to the ship - making it the deadliest virus-hit vessel so far. Here's a recap of what happened:
8 March: Ruby Princess leaves Sydney for New Zealand return trip.
17-18 March: On return, ship doctor reports cases of sick passengers to New South Wales (NSW) authorities. But health officials give it the green light to disembark
19 March: Ship docks in Sydney Harbour and 2,700 passengers disembark without knowing there is a virus threat and a dozen people have been tested.
One woman is rushed to hospital - she later dies from the virus.
20 March: NSW government announces positive cases on the ship, and scrambles to contact passengers, many of whom have already flown home.
29 March: Confirmed cases from the ship jump to over 200 in Australia, while international numbers are unknown.
State and federal officials argue over who is to blame as public anger grows.
5 April: 600 cases including 13 deaths are linked to the ship. NSW Police launch criminal probe into operator Carnival Cruises.
6 April: The ship docks at Port Kembla, south of Sydney, with about 200 sick crew on board.
8 April: Homicide investigators board ship and seize black box

South Korean teachers meet students virtually

Teachers are meeting students for the first time as the school year begins in South Korea - but through a screen.
The classroom you see here was supposed to be filled with students from a first grade English class at the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies.
The students told their teacher that they were worried about Covid-19 and many were eager to get back to school.

Delhi seals 20 'coronavirus hotspots'

A warm welcome to our colleagues joining us from their homes in the Indian capital Delhi.
They are following this development in India today where 20 neighbourhoods in their city have been sealed to stop the spread of the virus.
These include Nizamuddin, the area where a Muslim congregation at a mosque happened last month, setting off several clusters across India.
"No person will be permitted inside these localities or will be allowed to leave them," deputy chief minister, Manish Sisodia, said.
He said the government would make sure that all "essential items" were delivered to these areas.
India is also in the middle of a 21-day nation-wide lockdown - all public places, schools, colleges, most workplaces and transport services are shut.

Italy could ease lockdown by end of month: PM

Italy could ease lockdown measures as early as the end of the month, its prime minister Giuseppe Conte said in his first interview with UK broadcasters since the outbreak exploded.
He told the BBC that if "scientists [confirmed] it, we might begin to relax some measures already by the end of the month", adding that this was something that would have to be done gradually

Flour mills working 'round the clock' as demand soars

With extra time for the kitchen, many people are making their own bread these days, and that's led to a run on flour in the UK.
Supermarket sales are up over 90%. "It's unprecedented," says the owner of a century-old flour mill in Oxfordshire.
They've been struggling to cope with the demand but say they're up for the challenge and are hiring new workers.
Google searches for sourdough recipes have also soared, as has interest in this BBC Food recipe on how to make bread without yeast or bread flour.

Cases continue to decline in New Zealand

New Zealand is now into its 15th day in lockdown, and its number of virus cases appear to be steadily decreasing.
There were just 29 new cases confirmed today - the lowest in two weeks - following 50 on Wednesday, 54 on Tuesday and 67 on Monday.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern thanked fellow Kiwis for staying home, saying "you are breaking the chain of transmission and you did it for each other... you have saved lives".
She also announced stricter quarantine measures for all people arriving from overseas. They will now go straight to a managed facility rather than being allowed home.

Virus could push half a billion people into poverty

The economic fallout from the crisis could increase global poverty by as much as half a billion people.
This bleak warning comes from a UN study into the financial and human cost of the pandemic.
It will be the first time that poverty has increased globally in 30 years, according to the report.
The findings come ahead of key meetings of the World Bank, International Monetary Fund and G20 finance ministers next week.

What's happening in India?

Good morning from Delhi. Summer has started to arrive, and temperatures are hovering around 30C. If you're just joining us here is the latest from India:

• the country has entered the third and final week of its lockdown, but reports suggest that it's unlikely to end on 15 April as infections continue to go up rapidly
  
• The country saw its highest spike yet on Wednesday, with 773 cases reported in 24 hours. It has 5,095 active cases overall.
  

• Masks are now compulsory in at least three Indian cities - Delhi, Mumbai and Chandigarh - and violators can be arrested
  

If you're just joining us...

A warm welcome from all of us at BBC News. As Europe begins to wake up, let's have a look at what's been going on so far:

• in Australia, police are investigating why passengers from the Ruby Princess were allowed to disembark although many of them were later discovered to be carrying the virus
  
• India has seen its highest spike yet with almost 800 new cases in the past day
  
• Over in the US, New York state has seen its biggest daily death toll of almost 800 people and the governor has ordered flags to fly at half-mast. Reported deaths across the US now exceed 14,600 - the highest after Italy
  
• South Korea and New Zealand meanwhile continue to see their number of new cases decline
  
• China reported two deaths in Hubei province while there were 63 new confirmed cases - 61 of which were imported
  
• British Prime Minister Boris Johnson remains in intensive care but his condition is "improving"
  

Asian shares up on recovery outlook

Most share markets in Asia rose on Thursday on hopes that massive global economic stimulus and waning coronavirus infections in a US hotspot will lead to an economic rebound in the second quarter of this year.Australia's S&P/ASX 200 jumped 1.81%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was up 0.50% and the Shanghai Composite index rose 0.26%.
But Japan's Nikkei 225 bucked the trend, easing 0.55% in morning trade after the government this week declared a state of emergency for Tokyo and other urban areas related to the spread of the coronavirus."There are signs that infections are peaking, which is leading to the change in market sentiment," Masayuki Kichikawa, from Sumitomo Mitsui Asset Management in Tokyo, told Reuters.The upbeat view for a rebound came as New York state Governor Andrew Cuomo said the financial capital of New York City was witnessing a flattening curve of cases as social distancing measures were working.

Afghan families returning home spark concerns

Abdul Maez Mohammadi was working construction in Iran, but when the Covid-19 crisis hit he decided to gather his family and go home to Afghanistan.
He is among hundreds of thousands of Afghans who have made the same decision in recent days in an unprecedented migration from Iran and Pakistan - two of the worst-hit countries.
Some may have had a basic temperature check, but very few of these people will be quarantined on arrival.
At border crossings, authorities have been overwhelmed and there are reports documents are not even being checked anymore.
Aid agencies and NGOs are warning this could lead to a dramatic rise in Afghanistan's transmission rate - something the war-ravaged and poverty-stricken nation would likely not be able to cope with.
Read more here.

India turns trains into isolation wards

ndia is preparing for a potential surge in Covid-19 patients by tapping into an unusual resource: its trains, which power the world’s fourth biggest rail network.
“We, at the railways, thought: how can we contribute?” spokesman Rajesh Bajpai told the BBC. “So we came up with this idea and everyone liked it.”
Work has already begun to convert 5,000 coaches into quarantine or isolation wards which will eventually provide some 40,000 beds. And the railway ministry says it’s prepared to convert 15,000 more coaches.
Click here to read our full story on this.

Trump pins blame on WHO

Facing growing criticism over his handling of this crisis, President Trump is now seeking to pin the blame for the spread of the coronavirus on the World Health Organization (WHO).
Officials at the UN agency criticised his decision to impose a ban on travellers entering the US from China at the end of January - a move the president has since touted as crucial to controlling the spread of the virus. With conservative commentators and some Senate Republicans taking to the airwaves to denounce the Geneva-based body, Trump has clearly decided it would be politically expedient to join them.
He sees the WHO as being biased towards China, and believes it was too unquestioning of the early information about Covid-19 that came from the Chinese.
Although the WHO is not above criticism - particularly for its early assertion that human transmission had not been proven, and its reticence later on to declare a pandemic - even some of the president’s leading supporters are questioning the timing of his threat to withhold funding for the world’s leading health organisation - coming, as it does, at the height of a global pandemic.
You can read more about this story here.

If you're just joining us in the UK...

Good morning - if you've just got out of bed, here's what you need to know today.

• Wednesday's death toll of 938 was the highest daily number so far in the UK. In total 7,097 have died, latest figures show
  
  
• However, the daily number of new cases - thought to give an early indication as to whether the lockdown is working - is not "accelerating out of control", government scientists say
  
• Later, ministers will discuss the UK's lockdown. A decision on extending the measures is not due yet but restrictions are expected to stay in place
  
• Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab will chair the emergency Cobra meeting, which will take place virtually and include leaders of the devolved nations
  
• It comes as Prime Minister Boris Johnson enters a fifth day in hospital with coronavirus
  
• The PM "continues to make steady progress", according to the latest update from Downing Street
  
• Meanwhile, the public is being urged to stay at home over the Easter weekend despite warm weather
  

Asian cities take a breath

The near-global lockdown has brought something of a breather to Asia's normally congested megacities.
Where just weeks ago gridlock and pollution were part of the daily routine, traffic has all but disappeared in some places.
In Manila, the city's chronically jammed Epifanio Delos Santos Avenue saw a staggering 96% drop in cars, according to data published by the mapping company TomTom.
In Delhi, in India, congestion was down by about 59%, while the Indonesian capital Jakarta saw a 48% drop on the same time last year. In Bangkok, Thailand, traffic was down by 31%.

Most New York cases came from Europe, study suggests

A new study suggests that most of the Covid cases in New York - the worst hit state in the US - came from travellers in Europe, the New York Times reports. "The majority is clearly European," Harm van Bakel of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, the co-author of the paper, told the Times.
The study is awaiting peer review.
A separate team at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine came to a similar conclusion, despite studying a different group of cases.
On 1 Feb, President Trump barred foreign nationals from entering the country if they had previously been in China. But it was not until March that he began blocking travellers from most European countries.

Italy PM: 'Going back, I would do the same'

Italy's Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has said the country could begin to ease its lockdown by the end of April.
"If scientists confirm it, we might begin to relax some measures already by the end of this month," Conte said in an exclusive interview with the BBC's Rome Correspondent Mark Lowen.
He also defended his government's handling of the crisis, saying: "Going back, I would do the same."
"For us to severely limit constitutional freedoms was a critical decision that we had to consider very carefully. If I had suggested a lockdown or limits on constitutional rights at the start, when there were the first clusters, people would have taken me for a madman," he said.

• On the debate among EU countries over the economic response to the outbreak, Conte said: "If we do not seize the opportunity to put new life into the European project, the risk of failure is real"
  
• Conte said the idea that Russian aid to Italy during the outbreak could have conditions attached was "an offence to the Italian government… and also to Vladimir Putin, who would never dream of using this as leverage"
  
• "Behind the numbers are names and surnames, life stories and broken families," he said of the human cost of the pandemic. "The Italian nation is suffering"
  

Nearly 1.5m positive tests worldwide

There have now been nearly 1.5 million positive tests for coronavirus worldwide.
The scale of testing has varied considerably from country to country, but the real number of infections for many nations is thought to be much higher than the number of positive tests.
Here are the countries with the most positive tests to date:
US 432,132
Spain 148,220
Italy 139,422
Germany 113,296
France 83,080
China 82, 867
Iran 64,586
UK 61,474
Turkey 38,226
Belgium 23,403
Out of the 1,484,811 people who have tested positive, nearly 330,000 are known to have recovered. More than 88,500 deaths have been linked to Covid-19.

Wild flowers set to bloom amid lockdown

A plant charity is predicting a boost for wild flowers because some councils have stopped mowing verges and parks during the coronavirus outbreak.
The Plantlife charity has for years urged councils to cut grass less often and to delay cutting until flowers have had chance to seed.
Plantlife has had some success, but now, in a search of social media and council websites, it has found more councils are reducing mowing in the crisis.
The councils include Lincolnshire, Flintshire, Stockton-on-Tees, Newcastle and Wigan.
In another benefit for nature - the reduction in nitrogen emissions from vehicles is likely to help delicate wild flowers, which ordinarily face competition from more aggressive plants fertilised by the nitrogen.

UK increases overdraft amid economic warnings

The UK government is set to borrow billions of pounds from its overdraft to help the country through the pandemic.
It has secured a temporary overdraft extension with the Bank of England to give it a cash buffer and help the markets function properly during the crisis.
The latest official statistics show the UK economy was stagnant in the three months to February, just before the coronavirus pandemic escalated. Economists had expected it to grow.
Paul Dales, chief UK economist at Capital Economics, said that the UK's GDP could "fall at a speed and magnitude no-one has ever seen and no economy has ever experienced before".
In Wednesday's daily briefing, Chancellor Rishi Sunak warned that coronavirus "will have a significant impact ... on people's jobs and livelihoods".

Saudi coalition announces two-week Yemen ceasefire

A ceasefire announced by the Saudi-led military coalition fighting the Houthi rebels in Yemen is due to begin in the coming hours.
The coalition's spokesman said the two-week truce would come into effect from midday on Thursday local time (10:00 BST). The spokesman said the decision was partly in response to the spread of coronavirus - although no cases have been reported in Yemen so far.
But it's unclear if the Houthi forces - who control the capital Sanaa and much of northern Yemen - will also observe the ceasefire. Within hours of the announcement, both sides accused each other of carrying out attacks.
Last month, the UN called on the warring parties to speed up their efforts to end the five-year war.
Yemen is already suffering the world's largest humanitarian crisis, with 80% of the population dependent on some form of aid.

Cautious optimism in Europe

Countries across Europe are cautiously starting to ease their lockdown measures, as infection rates slowly decline.
Small shops will open in Austria and Czech Republic, and schools in Denmark will re-open on 15 April. German health minister Jens Spahn suggested there could be “a gradual return to normality” after Easter if the current positive trend in numbers continues.
Even in the worst affected nations there are reasons for optimism. Reports in Italy suggest restrictions could be eased on 4 May. And on Thursday morning, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said the country may be finally passing the worst of the outbreak. “The fire starts to come under control,” he told parliament.
Concerns remain however about the Easter weekend, when people usually travel to see loved ones. As of midnight, Portugal has banned people from leaving their local area without official documentation, with police vehicle checks to enforce the closure.
And the EU has still not decided how to respond to the economic meltdown. Finance ministers will hold another teleconference from 16:00 UK time to try to sort out a bailout plan

As China opens up, a remote border town locks down

A Chinese city on the Russian border is entering lockdown due to an increase in coronavirus cases - even as the rest of China cautiously opens up.
In Suifenhe, 1,000 miles from Beijing, people have been ordered to stay indoors, with some exceptions.
The border is closed to people, although not goods, and a 600-bed isolation hospital is being built.
One business owner told the BBC she was "very scared" - but another local said he had confidence in the government.

• Read our full story here.
  

British farmers forced to throw away milk

Concerns have been raised about the UK's dairy industry amid disruption to the supply chain during the pandemic.
Some dairy farms - including this one in the Midlands - say they are having to throw away thousands of litres of fresh milk and fear going out of business.
Union bosses are now calling for a crisis meeting with the government.
Ministers say they have already put measures in place to support the sector and are working closely with farmers.

Bangkok bans alcohol sales

The Thai capital has banned all sales of alcohol for 10 days to try to curb partying during Songkran, also known as the Buddhist New Year.
The festival happens every year between 13 and 15 April. It was traditionally marked by pouring water over statues of the Buddha.
But the festival has since turned into the world's biggest water fight. Throwing water is meant to wash away bad luck from the previous year.
The event draws hundreds of thousands of tourists every year - mostly to Bangkok. Similar new year festivals also take place in neighbouring Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar - though with varying degrees of water-throwing.
Thailand has reported over 2,300 Covid-19 virus cases so far, and 30 deaths.

London's theatres 'likely closed for months'

British theatres could need up to three months notice before they are able to reopen, the chair of the Arts Council has warned.
Speaking on the BBC's Today programme, Sir Nicholas Serota said some theatres could bounce back within a couple of weeks but others could take six times as long.
And even then, he warned: "It will take time to build back the audiences. I think people will not want to assemble in large numbers within a confined space”.
But he said theatres had shown their resilience through offering past performances and classes online.
Sir Nicholas also praised the government’s furlough scheme but warned artists, writers and musicians still face “really grave difficulty”. He said the Arts Council has set aside £20m of its reserves to help.
After similar measures in New York, Broadway theatres have warned that they do not expect to return until June at the earliest.

Nasa and Russia take off into space

One astronaut and two cosmonauts have set off from the Russian-operated Baikonur Cosmodrome for the International Space Station.
Strapped into the Soyuz MS-16 spacecraft are Russian cosmonauts Anatoli Ivanishin, Ivan Vagner and Nasa astronaut Chris Cassidy.
It's a strange time to be travelling, but crew member Ivanishin said where they were going was the "safest place on earth" right now.
"Although space flight carries with it a specific risk, we understand that for the next few months the International Space Station will be the safest place on earth," he said.
(P.S. In case you were wondering, a cosmonaut and an astronaut are just two different terms for the same job)

Terrorism charges over US coronavirus threats

Two men have been charged with terrorism offences in the US after threatening to spread coronavirus.
The Justice Department has classified coronavirus as a "biological weapon" and hoaxes can carry sentences of up to five years.
In the first incident, a man in Florida is accused of coughing and spitting on police officers while being arrested for domestic violence in March.
According to court documents, the 31 year old told one officer: "Well I got the corona." He later tested negative for the virus.
Meanwhile, another man in Texas faces a similar case after falsely claiming on Facebook that he had paid someone to spread coronavirus at supermarkets in the city of San Antonio.
More than 14,800 people have died of the virus in the US, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

Footballers launch NHS support fund

Footballers across the English Premier League have joined forces to create a contribution fund which will raise money for the NHS.
The collective initiative - named #PlayersTogether - aims to provide financial support where "it is needed most" during the coronavirus crisis.
England internationals Harry Kane, Jordan Henderson and Marcus Rashford, are involved.
There have been calls for Premier League players to take a 30% pay cut to help clubs weather the financial storm.
UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock "warmly welcomed" the "big-hearted decision" to create the fund. He has previously said players should "take a pay cut and play their part".

Indians worried over export of unproven 'corona drug'

India's decision to export a drug that US President Donald Trump has touted as a possible cure for Covid-19 has worried many at home who take it for other ailments.
Hydroxychloroquine (commonly known as HCQ) is an affordable anti-malarial drug. There is no proof that it's effective in treating Covid-19, but its routinely prescribed for autoimmune disorders like rheumatoid arthritis and lupus.
"It keeps my limbs functional," Barnali Mitra, who has been taking it daily for the last 17 years for lupus, said in a phone interview.
But Mitra is now struggling to find it in chemist stores. The same is true in the US, where Mr Trump's endorsement of the drug has led to a shortage in supply.
India is one of the world's largest manufacturers of HCQ, but it has severely restricted the drug's sale amid reports of people self-medicating.
Read the full story here.

UK care homes call for action to protect residents

The UK government is coming under increasing pressure to stop the spread of coronavirus in care homes.
The Alzheimer’s Society has written to the Health Secretary Matt Hancock calling for more action.
On Wednesday, it emerged that 15 residents had died at one home in Luton after an outbreak of the virus. It follows other outbreaks at care homes across the country.
Earlier this week, research by the Office for National Statistics showed more deaths had taken place in care homes than anywhere other than hospitals.
In other countries, such as Spain and Italy, where outbreaks are thought be more advanced, care homes have witnessed a disproportionately high number of deaths.
Our BBC Paris correspondent Lucy Williamson has been taking a look at the situation facing care homes across Europe.

Japan reports biggest daily rise in cases

There were more than 500 new virus cases in Japan on Wednesday, its biggest daily increase since the start of the outbreak, the health ministry said on Thursday.
The 503 cases, including 144 in the capital Tokyo, bring the total number of cases in the country to 5,002.
The figures come a day after the country imposed a state of emergency across several provinces and cities, including Tokyo.
But pictures from our reporters on the ground yesterday showed large groups of people gathering in smoking areas, and commuters still heading to work as per normal.

Emergency hospital visits fall to record low in England

New figures show emergency visits to hospitals in England have fallen to their lowest levels since records began a decade ago.
There were a total of just over 1.5 million visits in March - about 500,000 fewer than last year.
Previously, February 2011 was the quietest month for emergency medicine with about 1.6 million attendances, according to NHS England data.
Some smaller emergency departments have been temporarily closed to help free up staff and resources to tackle the pandemic.
There have been fears that people who may be having a stroke are not calling 999 during the pandemic.
Doctors are urging people to still seek emergency care when they most need it.

Covid-19 fuels a surge in fake medicines

More and more fake medicines linked to coronavirus are on sale in developing countries, the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned.
A BBC News investigation found fake drugs for sale in Africa, with counterfeiters exploiting growing gaps in the market.
And last month police officers from Malaysia to Mozambique confiscated tens of thousands of counterfeit face masks and fake medicines, many of which claimed to be able to cure coronavirus.
The WHO has said that taking these drugs could have "serious side effects". One expert even warned of "a parallel pandemic, of substandard and falsified products".
Around the world people are stockpiling basic medicines. But with the world's two largest producers of medical supplies - China and India - in lockdown, demand now outstrips supply, and the circulation of dangerous counterfeit drugs is soaring.
Read more about it here.

Spain death toll passes 15,000, but new cases fall

The number of coronavirus deaths in Spain has risen to 15,238, but there is hope as the rate of new infections appears to be slowing.
According to Thursday's figures, the number of recorded cases rose by 5,756 in the past 24 hours, down from the rise of 6,180 reported on Wednesday.
The figure represents a return to a daily decrease in new cases. New infections had been declining for four consecutive days until the numbers rose again on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Thursday's figures also showed a drop in the number of deaths.
Parliament is debating an extension to Spain's lockdown, but the prime minister has suggested the situation is beginning to be brought under control.

'Talk to the drug lords': Latest from Latin America

• Brazil's health minister has told local officials to talk with drug lords and gang leaders about how to stop the spread of coronavirus. Luiz Henrique Mandetta said that the authorities had to be realistic about who was in power in poor neighbourhoods. "We have to understand that these are areas where the state is often absent and the ones in charge are drug traffickers," he said. "They are human beings, too, and they need to help." Eight hundred people have died of Covid-19 in Brazil - the highest number of confirmed cases in Latin America.
  
• Bolivia is "cutting off" Montero for 12 days from Thursday as it fears that the city of 120,000 inhabitants is at the centre of the pandemic. No one will be allowed in or out of the city and residents will be confined to their homes except for one day set aside for essential food shopping. Helicopters will patrol the city from the air.
  
• Panamanians will have to spend Easter Saturday and Sunday in lockdown after the security minister declared a "total quarantine". But the Catholic Church has found novel ways to deliver blessings to its followers. Last Sunday, Archbishop José Domingo Ulloa took to the skies in a helicopter with a statue of the Virgin, to the delight of the faithful.
  

Parties with DJs and bouncy castles reported in Manchester

Parties with DJs, fireworks, and bouncy castles were among 660 house and street gatherings reported to have taken place in Greater Manchester last weekend.
Another 122 groups of people playing sport were also reported to police.
Famous faces from across the region - including England footballers Marcus Rashford and Steph Houghton, Coronation Street actor Daniel Brocklebank and Happy Mondays singer Shaun Ryder - appeared in a video to urge people to stay inside.
"I'm pleading with you all to please stay at home and stay isolated," said Brocklebank, who plays Billy Mayhew in the long-running soap. England captain Houghton said: "If your mates are asking for a game of football please say no."
Great Manchester Chief Constable Ian Hopkins warned officers will use legislative powers on those who break the rules over Easter weekend.

Stay home over Easter, UK public told

Newspaper adverts are urging people in the UK not to go away during the long weekend


With a long weekend and more hot and sunny weather on the way, the government is instructing the British public to maintain the lockdown and stay at home this Easter.
Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden told BBC Breakfast the UK was "just beginning to see this strategy starting to work" and asked people to "stick with it".
Temperatures are forecast to reach 25C (77F) in some parts of the country, according to the Met Office.
Some police forces are warning they will take a tougher line on people flouting the rules, with one saying it will stop people travelling to holiday homes and turn them back.
Read the full story

Scotland death toll rises by 81

A further 81 people have died with coronavirus in Scotland, according to figures from the Scottish government.
The latest daily death toll takes the total number of deaths in the country to 447.
The total number of confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Scotland is now 4,957, after a rise of 392 in a day.

Johnson 'continues to improve'

Prime Minister Boris Johnson had a "good night" in London's St Thomas' Hospital and his condition "continues to improve", according to his official spokesman.
Mr Johnson was "still in good spirits", the spokesman said, and had thanked the NHS for the “brilliant care” he was receiving, the spokesman added.
Mr Johnson is said to be continuing with “standard oxygen treatment” and it appears he has not taken part in any drug trials for Covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.

A further 6.6 million jobless claims in the US

More staggering unemployment figures are coming out of the United States.
Some 6.6 million people filed for unemployment benefits last week. That takes the total number of claims in the last three weeks to more than 16 million - truly unprecedented figures.
To put these numbers in context - nine million jobs were lost in the 2008 financial crisis over a much, much longer period.

Infection of newborn babies investigated

A hospital in Romania is under criminal investigation after 10 newborn babies tested positive for coronavirus.
The babies are believed to have been infected by medical staff because their mothers tested negative for Covid-19.
Medical staff at the hospital had previously tested positive for the disease, Romanian media reports say.
Romania's Health Minister Nelu Tataru said all but one of the babies had gone into isolation at home with their mothers.
The case, in the western Romanian city of Timisoara, has highlighted the problem of infections at hospitals in the country.
On Wednesday, another hospital was placed under quarantine because of the large number of infected staff.
The number of confirmed coronavirus cases jumped above 5,000 on Thursday in Romania, a rise of 441 in the past 24 hours.
More than 220 people with the virus have died in the country so far.

Wales records 41 more coronavirus deaths

Health officials in Wales have reported a further 41 patients have died after testing positive for coronavirus, bringing the total number of deaths there to 286.

Poorest nations 'need more help'

Providing more global financial assistance now to the world's poorest nations will be less costly than letting the virus run "rampant" in these countries, says International Rescue Committee president and CEO David Miliband.
Some poorer nations are without enough basic equipment, such as hand-washing facilities and ventilators, to tackle to the pandemic.
Former UK foreign secretary Mr Miliband warned that the threat of "real carnage" in these countries - potentially high death rates and ruined economies - was likely to have far-reaching consequences.
He said the Central African Republic only had three ventilators across its near-5m population, while a World Bank report has predicted Sub-Saharan Africa will suffer its first recession for 25 years.
"There will be no return to normal until this disease is beaten everywhere. We're not going to be opening up the UK, United States or France if there are swathes of the world where the disease is present," Mr Miliband told the BBC News Channel.
"We’re only as strong as the weakest link on the chain, and until the weakest links in the global chain are addressed we're not going to be able to have a return to anything like normality for the rest of us who are in a privileged position."

England reports 765 new coronavirus deaths

NHS England has recorded 765 new deaths in hospital from coronavirus.
It said that 140 of them occurred yesterday, while 568 took place between 1 April and 7 April.
The remaining 57 deaths took place in March, including two on 19 March and one on 16 March.

An Easter like no other for Europe's Christians

With traditional parades cancelled, worshippers in Spain have left flowers outside churches


Easter may be the most important festival in the Christian calendar, but this year it's set to look very different for believers across Europe.
With most of the Continent under lockdown and many churches closed, worshippers are turning to online or drive-in services. Even the Pope's Good Friday services will be livestreamed.
Tens of thousands of people have died of coronavirus across the Continent, and in countries where mourners haven't even been able to attend funerals, the restrictions will be even more sharply felt.
Milan, the city at the heart of Italy's hardest-hit region, is planning to mark Easter Sunday with a special performance by tenor Andrea Bocelli in its empty cathedral, the Duomo.
Bocelli told Italian newspaper Il Corriere della Sera that the solo concert - which will be broadcast online- would be a "hymn to life".

Sports continue to plan for resumptions

With the 2020 sporting calendar halted by the coronavirus outbreak, many governing bodies are still working out potential ways to complete their competitions when they are advised it is safe to do so.
Although that still seems a long way off, fans might be encouraged by some of today's developments:

• English Football League clubs have been told the season can be completed in just 56 days when it is safe to resume
  
• Formula 1 could still hold a world championship this year even if the season cannot start until October
  
• The Premier League Darts season hopes to resume on 30 July
  

Leeds United were top of the English Football League's Championship division before the season was suspended

Confirmed global cases pass 1.5 million

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases has reached 1.5 million globally, according to the latest figures from Johns Hopkins University.
That indicates a rise of half a million in six days, after the total hit a million on Friday.
The actual number is thought to be much higher as most people experiencing mild symptoms have not been tested.
Almost 90,000 people have died globally and more than 337,000 have recovered, according to the US university's figures. The US has the highest number of confirmed cases with more than 432,000 followed by Spain, Italy and Germany.
Italy has the highest death toll with more than 17,000 losing their lives. More than 15,000 have died in Spain and France has hit 10,000 deaths.
The UK has seen more than 7,000 deaths and has more than 60,000 confirmed cases.

When will we know if UK lockdown is extended?

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab will chair a Cobra meeting later


UK ministers are expected to discuss a review of the country's lockdown measures in the next few hours.
When the restrictions were first announced by Prime Minister Boris Johnson, he told the public they would be reviewed after three weeks (that's Monday).
The commitment was later written into the emergency laws to give police new powers to enforce the measures.
The review is expected to be on the agenda when Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab - who is deputising for the PM - chairs a meeting of the emergency Cobra committee shortly.
So, what can we expect? Here's our political editor Laura Kuenssberg's take.
Meanwhile, some of the nations which make up the UK already appear to have made their decision:

• In Wales, the restrictions have already been extended.
  
• And in Scotland, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said a short while ago that it was "likely" the nation would be on lockdown "for some weeks to come yet".
  

UK lockdown: Wales 'jumped the gun'

No official decision has yet been taken by ministers - but it seems now to be a matter of when rather than whether the lockdown is extended.
Earlier, Downing Street did not seek to guide journalists away from such an interpretation, and instead called on people to "stick with it at this critical juncture".
Before then, the Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden also urged the public to "keep at it." He cautioned too against throwing away the sacrifices of the past three weeks.
At the same time there is clear irritation at the decision of the Welsh government to pre-emptively announce they were going to extend the lockdown.
A UK government source expressed surprise that the Welsh government should have chosen to “jump the gun”.
Welsh Health Minister Vaughan Gething has suggested the lockdown could continue "for a number of weeks".

What's the latest in China?

It's been more than 24 hours since Wuhan, the Chinese city where the virus emerged, came out of lockdown. And it seems like people have been taking advantage of their regained freedom.
Chinese media say some 65,000 people left the city on Wednesday by train and plane alone. Within the city, 620,000 people took a bus, boat, taxi or used the subway for the first time in 77 days.
But the state-run China Daily newspaper says “Wuhan will continue to enforce strict controls on residential communities to prevent a rebound” - so strict temperature checks and enforced mask-wearing are still commonplace.
The Chinese government is also now stepping up national procedures to assess people who are asymptomatic. Any such cases need to be reported within two hours of discovery.
But as China emerges from months of very strict restrictions, people who hoped to be able to flock back to cinemas and other entertainment venues have been left disappointed
They were open for a few days but have again been shuttered on the orders of the government.

Saudi royals ‘retreat’ as virus spreads

by Frank Gardner - BBC Security Correspondent
Saudi Arabia, despite its modern healthcare system, was always going to be vulnerable to a disease like Covid-19. And an unconfirmed report by the New York Times suggests that the ruling Al-Saud family is no exception.
With its large, transient population of migrant workers and the annual Hajj pilgrimage, the country has pockets of intense concentrations of people in confined spaces. Since 2012, at least 780 people have died in Saudi Arabia after testing positive for Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (Mers), which is caused by another coronavirus. Before that, hundreds died in an outbreak of Rift Valley Fever.
So now, as the Covid-19 pandemic spreads through the Middle East, the ruling princes are retreating out of sight.
Even in normal years, many of the senior royals escape the summer heat of the capital Riyadh by moving to the Red Sea city of Jeddah, where King Salman is now reported to be isolating himself. His favoured son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, is reported to have withdrawn to a remote stretch of the north-west coast.
Meanwhile, the hi-tech King Faisal Specialist Hospital in Riyadh, where I was treated for gunshot wounds in 2004, is being readied to receive royal patients. The hospital has some of the best surgeons, the best equipment and the best treatment in the entire Arab world.
The kingdom is also preparing to fly home thousands of Saudi citizens “stranded” in the UK, according to the spokesman for the Saudi embassy in London.

What's the latest from Asia?

• A court in Myanmar has ordered the release of more than 125 Rohingya Muslims - including women and children - who were in prison awaiting trial, as fears grow of a potential coronavirus outbreak in the country's overcrowded jails. Hundreds of Rohingya have been jailed inside Myanmar for allegedly breaching immigration laws as the government considers the minority group to be immigrants from Bangladesh
  
• Seven British tourists who were taken ill while on holiday in Kerala, southern India, have been cured. The tourists - who were aged between 57 and 83 - will be flown home on the next available flight, the state's health minister said. “I’m extremely happy that I could treat and cure [the worst affected tourist],” Dr Fathahudheen, the head of pulmonary and critical care department at the Government Medical College, Kochi, told the BBC
  
• A separatist group in Indonesia's Papua has called for a truce during the coronavirus pandemic, according to an official statement. The West Papua National Liberation Army said people "must only be alert for coronavirus", and not be scared of military action. However, the truce comes with the demand that Indonesia removes all its troops and police from the region. Government and police officials have yet to comment.
  

Fauci: US deaths may only reach 60,000

The death toll from the coronavirus outbreak in the US may be as low as 60,000, less than half what was initially predicted, the country’s top infectious disease expert has said.
Dr Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said the effect of social-distancing measures had prompted him to revise his projections.
“The real data are telling us it is highly likely we are having a definite positive effect by the mitigation things that we’re doing, this physical separation,” Dr Fauci said in an interview with NBC on Thursday.
Dr Fauci said the death toll “looks more like the 60,000, than the 100,000 to 200,000” fatalities he initially predicted.
However, he warned against complacency, saying “we better be careful that we don't say, okay, we're doing so well we could pull back”.
Dr Fauci has sometimes been at odds with US President Donald Trump, who has often appeared more relaxed about easing social-distancing guidelines to reboot the economy.
Mr Trump has previously said he wants to open up the economy as soon as possible, but has refrained from doing so up to now as coronavirus cases have risen.
Dr Fauci appeared more optimistic on Thursday, telling NBC the US was “beginning” to flatten of the curve of Covid-19 transmission, especially in New York.
Read our story about the effect coronavirus has had on employment in the US.

Uganda's president, 75, makes exercise video

Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni has released a video of himself working out in his office, to encourage citizens to exercise at home during the coronavirus pandemic.

:Left Quotes:  Government of Uganda:
As promised in his address yesterday, The President today started his day with indoor exercising. He encourages all Ugandans who have interest in exercising to do it indoors.

Watch the video HERE

In the video, the president, barefoot, starts off by jogging around the room to warm up. He then gets down to do 21 press-ups in one go, as his press team counts along. He does 30 press ups in total.
On Wednesday, the president banned exercise in public as a control measure against coronavirus, after videos and photos of people working out in groups around the capital Kampala were posted on social media, despite the country being in a lockdown.

:Left Quotes: Yoweri K Museveni:
Just like I had earlier promised, I started my day with indoor exercising.
:Left Quotes:

This is not the first time the president has brought his own health into focus.
The 75-year old told the nation last year that he had lost 30kg (five stone) because he had started to focus on his health and fitness.
In January Mr Museveni walked 200 km (125 miles) through the Luweero triangle, where he had his bases as he fought the war that brought him to power.
Uganda has so far registered 53 cases of coronavirus.
Read more:

• How potatoes and cassava helped Uganda's Museveni shed 30kg
  

UK news round-up

The UK government's press conference is due to start in half an hour, at 17:00 BST.
In the meantime, here's the latest news from the UK:

• NHS England announced a further 765 people with the virus had died. In Scotland, another 81 people died, while Wales announced a further 41 deaths.
  
• Boris Johnson's condition is said to be improving, and he is "in good spirits" according to Downing St
  
• The Welsh government has annoyed Westminster by pre-empting its decision on extending the lockdown
  
• Greater Manchester Police issued a warning after shutting down over 600 parties
  

China denies 'cover-up' and defends WHO

The Chinese government has rejected “unfair and unjust” allegations that it tried to “cover up” the coronavirus outbreak in the city where it began.
Zhao Lijian, a foreign ministry spokesman, said China had been “open, transparent and responsible” in informing the world about the epidemic.
He said it “took us some time before we knew more about” the virus, which was officially first detected in the city of Wuhan, in Hubei province, late last year.
China is widely considered to have concealed the extent, severity and even existence of Covid-19 during the early stages of the outbreak
Read more: Why China's claims of success raise eyebrows
On Wednesday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo accused China of not being transparent about the scale of the outbreak in Wuhan.
On Thursday Lijian hit back, suggesting the virus might not have originated in Wuhan and could have emerged “in any city, country or region in the world”.
He also defended the World Health Organization, after US President Donald Trump accused it of being "very China-centric".
Read the full story: WHO chief urges end to 'politicisation' of virus

What did we learn from today's UK press conference? 

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance, and chief medical officer Chris Whitty have finished the press conference. Here's what they told us:

• We should not expect any decision on changing the lockdown restrictions until the end of next week
  
• Social distancing is working, with the numbers of new cases much lower than they would otherwise be. The number of people in intensive care is also not rising exponentially. The death toll will continue to rise for about two weeks after intensive care admissions stabilise, as deaths lag behind admissions
  
• Mr Raab has not spoken to Prime Minister Boris Johnson since he was taken to hospital on Sunday
  
• The government is planning to formally recognise the work of frontline workers but does not yet have specific plans for how it will do so
  

Latest news from Europe

• EU finance ministers meet on Thursday evening (remotely, of course) to try to break the deadlock and agree a common economic response to the outbreak
  
• German Chancellor Angela Merkel has called for solidarity and talks chairman Mario Centeno says they are very close to a deal, after the first attempt lasted 16 hours and ended in stalemate
  

• Italy’s daily number of deaths rose to 610 on Thursday, up from 542 the day before, with day-to-day confirmed cases also rising
  
• The death toll in Italy's the worst hit region, Lombardy, has now passed 10,000 - a grim reminder the crisis is far from over.
  
• The Italian data comes after Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte told the BBC his country “might begin to relax some measures” in its lockdown in the coming weeks, depending on scientific advice
  
• Other leaders have also sounded cautiously optimistic about the outbreak. Spain's PM Pedro Sánchez told MPs that “the fire is starting to come under control”
  
• However, there is widespread concern about Easter – the most important festival in the Christian calendar, which will this year see the Pope livestream a service from the Vatican - with countries from Poland to Portugal announcing even tighter restrictions to stop people celebrating together
  

Lockdown well into May is best-case scenario

David Shukman - Science Editor, BBC News
Amid all the speculation about when and how the UK’s lockdown may be relaxed, it’s worth looking back at the original scientific advice that led to the measures in the first place.
It makes clear that nothing is likely change soon.
The government’s scientific advisory committee SAGE has always suggested that a 13-week programme of interventions will be needed.
And although that sounds like very precise timing, it all depends on how the British public respond.
The scientists made a fairly pessimistic assumption: that only 50% of households would observe the requirements.
So what might a timetable look like? Once the peak in daily deaths has been reached – possibly in the next week or so – even the best-case scenario suggests that it will take a month or two for the numbers dying to fall to low levels.
That gets us well into May and maybe to early June, and it’ll be a brave political decision to ease the restrictions any earlier if there’s a risk of a "second peak", a resurgence of the virus.

US and Canada round-up

The number of jobless Americans has surged for a third week - with more than 6.6 million people filing for unemployment - as the coronavirus continues to pummel the economies of both Canada and the US.
What else is happening?

• Canada lost one million jobs in March - the largest loss in a single month since records began in 1976. The federal data, released on Thursday, also pushes the unemployment rate up to 7.8%
  

• The Canadian death toll could hit 22,000 by the end of the pandemic, health officials said on Thursday, as total cases across the country neared 20,000
  
• Amid partisan squabbles, the US Senate on Thursday failed to pass an additional $250bn (£200bn) of aid meant to help small businesses cope with the economic damage
  
• US cases have topped 432,500 with 14,830 deaths - 7,067 of those in New York State alone
  

UK PM moved out of intensive care

19:19 - We have a new update on Boris Johnson's health.
A spokesman for the UK prime minister said: "The prime minister has been moved this evening from intensive care back to the ward, where he will receive close monitoring during the early phase of his recovery."
"He is in extremely good spirits."

Coronavirus affects another US Navy ship

nother US aircraft carrier has seen an outbreak of the coronavirus. Although the number of cases on the USS Nimitz is small, it is a worrying signal for the US Navy.
The crew were starting to go on board this month with the idea of remaining there in quarantine ahead of their summer deployment to the Pacific.
Another aircraft carrier - the Theodore Roosevelt - has already had to dock in Guam after a significant outbreak with over 300 of the crew testing positive. The controversy surrounding the captain’s efforts to warn his superiors of the situation cost him his job and subsequently, the job of the acting US Navy secretary who fired him.
As we have already seen on cruise liners, it is impossible to stop the spread of the virus in the confined spaces of a ship, even a massive vessel like the Roosevelt, which, with its air wing, has a crew of over 5,500. The disruption is going to significantly impact the readiness of the US carrier fleet, which even in normal times is under huge operational pressure.

Latest from the Middle East

As many as 36 prisoners in Iran are thought to have been killed after security forces used live ammunition and tear gas to quell protests among inmates who feared they were at risk of contracting Covid-19 in jail, according to Amnesty International. The human rights group cited sources as saying lethal force was used in the Sepidar and Sheiban prisons in the city of Ahvaz on 30 and 31 March. There was no immediate comment from officials
In Lebanon, security forces have stopped a man from setting himself on fire outside a bank. The man reportedly had issues with the branch in Marjayoun. Banks have been a target of anger among Lebanese, who hold them partly to blame for the country's current financial crisis, which has been exacerbated by the pandemic
The Gaza Strip ran out of coronavirus test kits on Wednesday, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. Spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra said dozens of samples were awaiting testing. Officials fear Covid-19 could spread fast through the blockaded enclave and that its overstretched hospitals could be overwhelmed.

'Hooray' - reaction to Johnson leaving intensive care

The news that UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson is out of intensive care is being widely welcomed across the political spectrum.
"Good news," tweeted Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, "brilliant news" said International Trade Secretary Liz Truss and "hooray!" was the reaction from Environment Minister Zac Goldsmith.
Labour's shadow justice secretary David Lammy said: "Pleased Boris Johnson has been moved out of intensive care - the whole country is willing him on to make a full recovery as soon as possible."

Too soon to say when Johnson will be back in charge

Jessica Parker - BBC political correspondent
I don’t think we’ll hear any more from Downing Street on Boris Johnson's condition. Their approach has been wanting to give updates where they are necessary, not a running commentary on his health.
Clearly it's positive news for the prime minister after that stay in intensive care. His recovery is clearly going to continue over a number of days. Dominic Raab, the foreign secretary and first secretary of state, continues to deputise for the PM.
It’s too soon to speculate how much time this situation will last. It’ll be up to the prime minister's medical team what his recovery period is and when he can start working.
He has not been working since Monday - before his move to intensive care, when he was on a ward. He was given the red box - a ministerial box of government documents - but that changed when his condition worsened on Monday evening.
The expectation is that Raab will continue to deputise for the prime minister. He’s been chairing the meetings. This is positive news but it clearly doesn’t mean Johnson is back in Number 10 now. He’s still recovering.

'Clap for Carers' starts in UK

All across the UK applause is ringing out in the third "Clap for Carers" event, as people in lockdown show their appreciation for NHS workers and other staff on the front line of the pandemic.
Shortly before the 20:00 BST start, a plane was seen flying over Liverpool with a banner bearing a message of thanks.

#YesBoris trends

The hashtag YesBoris is trending in the UK alongside #clapforourkeyworkers and #ClapForTheNHS following the news that Boris Johnson has left intensive care.
Also welcoming the news is US President Donald Trump who tweets: "Great News: Prime Minister Boris Johnson has just been moved out of Intensive Care. Get well Boris!!!"

Johnson's fiancee posts Clap for Carers message

As the UK applauded NHS workers, Boris Johnson's pregnant fiancee, Carrie Symonds, posted several clapping emoji along with an image of a rainbow.
Earlier this evening it was announced that the prime minister had been moved out of intensive care at St Thomas' Hospital in London.

Runners should be 10m away, says research

With the gyms closed and public transport to be avoided, many of us are running or cycling or simply walking to keep fit, commute or just catch a breath of fresh air. But a group of researchers are warning we should perhaps beware.
While the standard social distancing rule between 1–2 metres may be effective when you are standing still inside, according to a new simulation, people who are in motion should be given a wider berth to avoid passing on the Coronavirus.
In a simulation they found a pedestrian or cyclist sneezes, coughs or even just exhales, the saliva particles are left behind in the air.
Which means the person coming up behind you passes through this cloud of droplets.
By using methods used to enhance athletes performances, the teams from Eindhoven University of Technology and Leuven University found the greatest risk of infection exists in the slipstream.
On the basis of these results - which haven’t yet been published - they advise that those on the move should be given more of a social distance.
Walkers should get at least 4 metres, runners 10 metres and for cyclists at least 20 metres.
Something that’s pretty unrealistic in most cities.
And the teams have jumped the gun a bit, going to press before actually publishing a study, bypassing the normal route.
Jogging during the day has already been banned in Paris, this research may encourage us to think twice before overtaking, to ensure we’re getting a healthy breath of fresh air - rather than one that might include a strangers saliva particles.
Although there is no suggestion that cycling, running or walking is irresponsible during a pandemic. The advice in many places battling the virus is to stay at home as much as possible.

WHO marks 100 days of Covid-19

On 31 December 2019 – exactly 100 days ago – the Chinese government reported the detection of a “pneumonia of unknown cause” to the World Health Organization (WHO).
That illness would come to be called Covid-19. First detected in the Chinese city of Wuhan, the disease has since swept across the world, infecting more than 1.5 million people, about 90,000 of whom have died.
The grim 100-day milestone was acknowledged by the head of the WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, at a media briefing on Thursday.
In a sobering statement, Dr Tedros said Covid-19 had “overwhelmed health systems, disrupted the global economy, and lead to widespread social disruption”.
The pandemic, he said, was much worse than a health crisis, requiring “a whole-of government and whole-of-society response”.
“In the last 100 days, Covid-19 has shown us the damage it can mete out in wealthy nations,” Dr Tedros said.
So, what did happen in those 100 days? Here is a timeline of key events so far:

• 31 December 2019: China informs the WHO of "cases of pneumonia of unknown cause” detected in Wuhan
  
• 11 January: China reports its first known death from an illness caused by Covid-19
  
• 12 January: China publicly shares the genetic sequence of Covid-19
  
• 13 January: The first Covid-19 case outside China is reported in Thailand, heralding the start of its spread worldwide
  
• 23 January: A lockdown is imposed in Wuhan, a city of 11 million people
  
• 30 January: A “public health emergency of international concern” is officially declared by the WHO
  
• 7 February: Li Wenliang, a Chinese doctor who tried to warn the world about Covid-19, dies with the disease
  
• 22 February: Italy reports its first coronavirus deaths, as it introduces social-distancing measures
  
• 11 March: The WHO labels the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic
  
• 27 March: UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson tests positive for coronavirus, the first known world leader to do so
  

Scottish football seasons suspended to 10 June

The Scottish football season has been pushed back with all games suspended until at least 10 June.
Games were halted on 13 March because of the coronavirus pandemic and had been originally been stopped until 30 April.

UK citizens feel 'out on a limb' in India

Rajini Vaidyanathan - BBC News
In the early hours of Thursday morning, the first of seven repatriation flights to bring UK citizens home from India landed in London.
More than 300 Britons were on the flight from Goa, including Amanda Ashworth and her three young children. Relieved to finally return home, she said the UK government had made her feel like she was “out on a limb”, and had taken too long to act.
Those who are still stranded share that sentiment. As other countries including Germany and Ireland have laid on rescue flights for thousands of their citizens in India, Brits have looked on with frustration. In the next few days more flights will leave from Goa, Delhi and Mumbai, but there’s concern among British Indians that tourists have been prioritised and they have been ignored.
Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi, the MP for Slough, told the BBC that the largest number of Brits were in Punjab and Gujarat. “They’re feeling discriminated against,” he said.
Officials say they’re doing all they can to arrange more flights, but given the sheer numbers, it’ll take time. Many of those still waiting say they’re running out of food, money and medicine.

Four more deaths in NI - but why don't the UK figures add up?

Northern Ireland reported four deaths of people who tested positive for coronavirus today, bringing its total to 82.
But you may notice something odd when you add up all the reported figures from the nations in the UK: they don't add up to the figure given by Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab.
England reported 765 deaths, Scotland 81, and Wales 41. With Northern Ireland, that makes a total of 891, compared to the 881 given by Mr Raab.
The answer is simply that each nation submits its latest total by a set deadline for the UK figures. But sometimes they continue to update their own daily total, giving a different number from the headline UK-wide figure.
It brings the total number of confirmed coronavirus deaths in the UK to 7,978 since the first one was reported on 5 March.

Merkel offers 'cautious hope' for Germany

German Chancellor Angela Merkel says the "slight flattening" of the country's coronavirus curve offers some "cautious hope".
The number of confirmed infections in Germany rose by 4,974 in the past 24 hours to 108,202, climbing for the third straight day after four previous days of drops. There have been 2,107 deaths.
Merkel said: "I can say that the latest numbers on the spread of the virus give reason for cautious hope.
"The curve is flattening slightly. And the number of those infected is going slightly down. We can be very happy about that."

UK minister defends visiting parents during lockdown

UK Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick has defended visiting his parents during the coronavirus lockdown - as reported in The Guardian
In a tweet he said: "For clarity - my parents asked me to deliver some essentials - including medicines.
"They are both self-isolating due to age and my father's medical condition and I respected social distancing rules."

Sweden's approach ‘completely wrong’, says Norwegian official

Sweden is one of the few European countries to avoid a full lockdown. While social distancing is in place, schools remain open across the country, as do bars and restaurants. You can read more about it here.
That approach has come in for some criticism, at home and abroad. On Thursday the assistant director of Norway’s Directorate of Health, Espen Rostrup Nakstad, said the Swedish plan was “completely wrong”.
He told newspaper VG that countries that initially adopted a “braking strategy” would have to quickly switch to stronger measures to contain any spread.
But Anders Tegnell, the chief epidemiologist at Sweden’s Public Health Agency, has defended his country’s efforts.
“Norway chose the general strategy of closing as much as possible… to gain some respite,” he told Norway’s public broadcaster NRK.
“We are trying to do the same, but have accepted that closing the community is not the solution.”
As of Thursday, Sweden has reported 793 dead in total – rising from 687 on Wednesday – with over 9,000 confirmed cases in all. Norway has reported 88 deaths and 6,160 confirmed cases.

World's first coronavirus film set for release

Believe it or not, a movie has already been made about coronavirus.
"Corona: Fear is a Virus" - which will be available on streaming platforms later this month - is about seven people trapped in a lift and the chaos that ensues when one of them starts to cough.
Director Mostafa Keshvari started the film after the outbreak in China but before it became a global pandemic.
Film critic Noah Gittell says it might be too soon for people to process the trauma but adds there is nothing unethical about releasing a coronavirus film now.

Food banks in US and Canada stretched beyond capacity

Food banks across Canada and the US are buckling under the weight of surging demand, just as social-distancing orders have cut down on both donations and volunteers.

• In Sunrise, Florida, aerial photographs captured a miles-long row of cars waiting to receive food from Feeding South Florida. The organisation says it has seen a 600% increase in the number of people asking for food amid widespread layoffs and furloughs. So far, the organisation is on pace to deliver 2.5 million meals each week across the state
  
• Feeding America - the largest network of food banks in the US - has predicted a $1.4bn shortfall over the next six months
  
• Food Banks Canada has announced a "special appeal" fundraising campaign - hoping to raise an additional CAD$150m - enough to support the current level of the public’s use of food banks for 90 days
  
• Toronto officials said this week that more than 40% of the city's food banks had been shuttered because they were without the manpower to keep them running. Even before the virus outbreak, almost one in five Toronto households experienced food insecurity - a number expected to rise as the country faces record unemployment
  

EU ministers agree virus rescue package

EU finance ministers have agreed a €500bn (£440bn) rescue package for European countries hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic.
The chairman of the Eurogroup, Mario Centeno, announced the deal, reached after marathon discussions in Brussels.
The French Finance Minister, Bruno Le Maire, hailed the agreement as the most important economic plan in EU history.
The package includes support for governments via the European Stability Mechanism, support for companies through the European Investment Bank and support for workers via the European Commission’s new programme known as Sure.
However the ministers fell short of accepting a demand, by France, Spain and Italy, to share out the cost of the crisis by issuing so-called corona bonds.
Earlier, German Chancellor Angela Merkel rejected that idea of mutual debt, stating that she didn’t believe there should be a “common liability for each other’s debt, given the current state of the political union in the EU”.

Stay away, urge UK tourist hotspots

Britain's tourist hotspots have all pleaded with people not to visit them for the Easter weekend.
People in the UK are only meant to travel for essential reasons.
Judy Pearce, the council leader of South Hams in Devon, told the BBC: "Normally we love seeing people but not this year. What is there not to understand?
"It is not necessary travel to come to your second home. Devon and Cornwall have done well to keep the virus out largely, but people will bring it."
Police have been stopping cars with more than one person from driving into Cumbria and the Lake District - and ordering them to do a U-turn and go home if they do not have a legitimate reason for travel.
And a roadblock has been set up on one of the main routes to the coast in west Wales.

Rapid-fire tests: how do they work?

The White House announced earlier today that everyone in the room for Trump's daily briefing will be given a test for Covid-19 - with results generated within minutes.
Earlier this week, Trump touted these new, rapid testing kits as a potential game-changer for hospitals.
"It's a five-minute test so people can get their results back very quickly," he said.
Some rapid tests work by finding fragments of genetic material from the coronavirus to find a current infection. In practical terms, this means a healthcare worker can use a swab to take a sample from a patient's nose or throat. This sample is magnified and replicated in a toaster-sized machine to see if the virus is present.
Another type of rapid testing is also in development: an antibody test. These blood tests can reveal whether someone had Covid-19 in the past, even after that person has recovered.
A positive test result shows that a person has previously been exposed to the virus, and developed the antibodies to fight it.
Top US health expert Dr Anthony Fauci said on Thursday that antibody tests would become available to Americans "very soon".

Trump 'continues to pray' for Boris Johnson

Trump tells Americans he is pleased that UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been moved out of intensive care.
"That's a tremendous statement," he says. "And we continue to pray for him and his fast recovery."
Johnson has been moved out of intensive care but remains in hospital. His spokesman said he was in "extremely good spirits".