Image source, Reuters

Dozens of workers at Afghanistan's presidential palace have tested positive for coronavirus, according to media reports.

Twenty cases were initially reported, but on Sunday the New York Times said the number had risen to 40.

The Afghan government has not commented and there's no suggestion that President Ashraf Ghani - who reportedly lost part of his stomach to cancer in the 1990s - has been infected.

There have been fewer than 1,000 confirmed cases of the virus in Afghanistan and 33 people have died.

But the true number could be much higher as the country has limited access to testing and the health system has suffered under decades of conflict.

There are also fears that the virus could have spread after more than 150,000 Afghans returned from virus-stricken Iran during March, while tens of thousands of others returned from Pakistan.

Read more about the situation in Afghanistan here.

If you're just joining us, here are the latest coronavirus headlines from around the world:

• In the UK, a total of 16,060 people hospitalised with the virus have now died. Minister Michael Gove said the government will take a “balanced judgement” on when to lift lockdown measures
• New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said his state is "past the high point" of the virus outbreak. The state recorded 507 coronavirus deaths in the past 24 hours, continuing its downward trend
• Also in the US, President Donald Trump said China should face consequences if it is found they were “knowingly responsible" for the outbreak
• His comments came as further protests were held in some parts of the country by conservative activists. They want local lockdown measures to be relaxed, despite the growing death toll nationwide

• Meanwhile, Spain’s Prime Minister, Pedro Sanchez, said he hoped to relax lockdown restrictions. The country's death toll from the Covid-19 outbreak slowed on Sunday, the health ministry said
• Some of the biggest stars of the music and entertainment industry joined together overnight to perform a special concert to celebrate the work being done by healthcare workers around the world
• According to Johns Hopkins University tracking, there are now more than 2.3m cases of coronavirus around the world and more than 160,000 deaths

The NHS Nightingale Hospital in London, the 4000-bed emergency hospital set up to treat those suffering from coronavirus, discharged its first patients on Sunday evening.

The field hospital, set up in east London's converted ExCel centre, took in its first patients on 7 April, four days after it opened.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock sent his congratulations, praising the "brilliant team" working at the hospital on Twitter.

James Badcock
BBC News, Madrid

Spain has seen more than 20,000 deaths and the Madrid region is at the heart of it: a capital city blighted by this virus.

This city has seen 7,000 deaths, more than other European capitals.

The contagion spread at a remarkable rate through the densely populated city and its cluster of suburbs.

On the front line here, health workers say their resources are stretched to the point of collapse.

"The shortages we had anyway have been brutally exposed," one doctor told the BBC.

You can read more about the situation in Madrid's hospitals here.

Image source, Getty Images

Many weddings planned in March, April and May have been postponed because of the pandemic but that did not deter UK couple Hayley Pitman and Harvey Skelton.

They were set to get married in Gloucestershire, England, last weekend but the ceremony was postponed.

Instead, Hayley, an NHS nurse, and Harvey, a rugby coach, tied the knot on the internet, watched by family and friends via video link - and were joined by a surprise guest, external, Sky News reports.

Pop star Ellie Goulding popped up on the link and performed her hit single Love Me Like You Do as the couple shared their first dance in their living room.

"The appearance by one of our favourite singers was just the icing on the cake, I couldn't believe it," said Hayley.

Image source, Getty Images

Football is suspended because of coronavirus across most of Europe, including Denmark where there have been no matches in the Superliga since 9 March.

When games do resume they are likely to be played behind closed doors in empty stadiums due to social distancing measures.

Danish Superliga leaders FC Midtjylland have come up with an idea to ensure their supporters are as close as possible to the action - while also remaining at a safe distance - after announcing plans for a drive-in on match days.

The plans will allow around 2,000 cars to park outside their stadium in Herning and watch matches on two big screens.

More than 350 people have died after contracting coronavirus in Denmark, and the country has had more than 7,300 confirmed cases, although beauty salons, hairdressers and tattoo parlours are set to reopen on Monday.

Read more here.

Image source, Getty Images

There are more than 1.5 million people in the UK who are at the greatest risk of needing hospital treatment if they catch coronavirus.

This includes people over the age of 70, regardless of whether they have a medical condition or not, and people of any age with underlying health conditions such as heart disease.

People with cancer who have been receiving chemotherapy are also at greater risk, and they are being asked to stay at home all of the time to shield themselves from the virus.

Coronavirus also appears to disproportionately affect men in their 50s and 60s to a certain degree, although they are not singled out as a high-risk group. But it is not that clear-cut.

Read more here.

Image source, Getty Images

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has said his state is "past the high point" of the virus outbreak but he urged caution as the death toll rose.

"Whether or not the descent continues depends on what we do," Cuomo said at his daily briefing. "This is only halftime in this entire situation."

"The outbreak is slowing, not growing," he said. But, he added, "We have a very small margin of error here."

New York recorded 507 coronavirus deaths in the past 24 hours, continuing its downward trend. It's good news, Cuomo said, "only compared to the terrible news we were living with: the constant increase".

"We still have more to do," the governor said. And for local officials facing pressure over shuttering of schools, parks and businesses, he said, "Blame me."

Image source, Getty Images

To melee or not to melee during the age of Covid-19? That is the question for sports teams embroiled in a tense battle.

On Sunday, players from two Chinese Pro Baseball League teams opted for the former after Fubon Guardians pitcher Henry Sosa struck the backside of Rakuten Monkeys pitcher Kuo Yen-Wen.

Rakuten players left their bench incensed while their Fubon counterparts came rushing over from the other side of the field.

The game in Taiwan's Taoyuan International Baseball Stadium featured no fans because of social distancing measures... although it seems the players threw caution to the wind for a few moments.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has signed an order allowing virtual weddings as in-person weddings are cancelled amid social distancing restrictions.

"There's now no excuse when the question comes up for marriage. No excuse," Cuomo joked at his daily briefing on Saturday. "You can do it by Zoom. Yes or no."

Couples in New York will be able to apply for marriage licenses online, with clerks conducting the ceremonies virtually.

Cuomo's announcement follows the news that New York State - epicentre of the US outbreak - will extend its lockdown measures until 15 May.

Similar measures have been introduced in the US state of Colorado, where couples are allowed to apply for marriages online.

Michael Bristow
BBC World Service Asia Pacific Editor

Image source, Getty Images

A football team from the Chinese city where the coronavirus originated last year has arrived home, after they were unable to return for more than three months.

The players of Wuhan Zall were greeted by hundreds of chanting fans as they arrived at the city's railway station at the weekend.

When Wuhan was placed under lockdown, the squad decided to stay on at their winter training camp in Spain.

When they did return to China, via an extended layover in Germany, they were told to go into quarantine.The squad then had to wait for Wuhan to re-open to the rest of the country before they could finally return.Team members will now spend several days with their families before they resume training, although it's not clear when the postponed Chinese Super League will begin.

Image source, Getty Images

You probably know by now that washing your hands is a key part of preventing the spread of coronavirus.

But do you know how to do it properly?

Well we asked Dr Adele McCormick from the University of Westminster in London to demonstrate the best method.

Image source, Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum

On 19 April 1995 a bomb attack killed 168 people in Oklahoma City.

Every year survivors and loved ones usually gather at the memorial site to pay tribute and pledge never to forget. But this year, because of coronavirus, the 25th anniversary plans had to change dramatically.

A special pre-recorded remembrance ceremony was shown at 09:00 local time (14:00 GMT) online and on local television instead.

Those watching were encouraged to use the hashtag #WeRemember to feel connected. The recording included 168 seconds of silence and each of the victims' names was also read aloud.

“We gather virtually, not coming physically together, so hopefully lives may be saved,” Reverend Michael B Curry said. “We gather virtually so that our health may be preserved and the health of others – even people we don’t know.”

“We gather virtually as an act of love,” he added.

You can read more about the attack here:

• The day terror came to Oklahoma

Vicki Young
Chief Political Correspondent

Education Secretary Gavin Williamson put it bluntly - he can’t tell parents, pupils and teachers when schools will re-open.

There’s been a lot of speculation that this could be one of the first steps the government takes on the path back to normal life.

But ministers say it’s still too soon to say when that could happen.

There are many options to consider, including whether younger pupils and those with exams next year could return to the classroom first.

The number of people in hospital with Covid-19 is plateauing or falling in most areas. But ministers are waiting for more scientific data before acting.

Other countries are starting to lift restrictions and the UK will be watching and learning from their experiences.

For now, they don’t want to dilute the message that staying at home and social distancing must continue.

The UK government's daily briefing has just come to a close, so what have we learnt?

• Education Secretary Gavin Williamson began by thanking schools, nurseries and children's services for the "vital role" they are playing
• But he said he could not give a date for when schools would re-open
• Williamson listed a number of measures the government was introducing for disadvantaged children trying to learn at home, including buying laptops for those preparing for exams and giving 4G routers for those without internet
• The minister said there was a "national effort" to ensure NHS staff and careworkers got the protective kit they needed
• He also said PM Boris Johnson has been leading from the front, despite criticism that he had missed early meetings on the pandemic
• Dr Jenny Harries, the deputy chief medical officer, said it was difficult to make like-for-like comparisons with other countries
• She said the UK would need to wait 12 months or more to look back and examine what had led to the differences in death rates

Gavin Williamson is asked whether teachers should have PPE while they are still working in schools for children of key workers and those in care.

The education secretary says the government has worked "very closely" with the sector in issuing advice and their safety is "absolutely paramount".

When it comes to when schools will be open again, Williamson again won't give a date - but he says teachers, parents and children will have "proper notice so they are able to prepare".

Williamson says it is "vital to get distribution right on PPE".

The care sector is "critical" in the response to the crisis, Harries adds, and broader systems have been developed to ensure PPE equipment will reach even the smallest care homes.

She says two further "drops" of equipment are planned for the care sector next week.

Image source, Reuters

The education secretary insists that a delayed shipment of 400,000 protective gowns from Turkey will arrive on Monday.

"We want to make sure there is a continuous supply," he says, adding that "every effort of the government" is going into making sure that front-line medical staff have the equipment "they expect and need".

Dr Harries refuses to comment on speculation that the UK may have passed the peak.

She says a drop in fatalities is "very good news" but we should not jump to conclusions. Sunday's figure of 596 new deaths could go up again, she notes.

However, she says, case numbers are down by 30% on average from figures 8-10 days ago. "Things are heading in the right direction," she says.

Image source, AFP

The next reporter asks Education Secretary Gavin Williamson if the UK government is looking at measures by countries like Denmark that have started re-opening schools.

He says: "Absolutely... and we will look closely how that works, how that goes and lessons that can be learnt."

Dr Jenny Harries is then asked why the figure of deaths in the UK is higher than in many other countries.

She says there is a "difficulty understanding the differentiation".

While Germany stands out now, Dr Harries adds: "We need to be very clear and need to look back in 12 or 20 months' time" to get the full picture.

She says the media has focused on counting deaths in the UK but the "most useful statistic" is comparing the number of deaths in the same season in previous years to the death toll during the coronavirus outbreak.

"It is difficult to draw direct comparisons with other countries," she adds. "That is not an excuse but a fact."