Anna Holligan
BBC News Hague correspondent

There seems to have been a considerable drop in Dutch deaths and hospital admissions over the past few days, according to the public health authority’s (RIVM) latest data. ‪Since Sunday, 75 people were reported to have been hospitalised and 67 patients have died - compared to double that number on Friday.

However, the daily figures don't reflect the trend and the actual numbers are almost certainly higher. There are fewer staff working over the weekend, so it's normal to have a dip in the figures recorded. And the RIVM only registers Covid-19 as the cause of death when a person has tested positive for the virus.

That said, it looks as though the curve has been flattened. A spokesperson for the RIVM told the BBC it looks as though the Netherlands is "‪over the hill", as far as hospital admissions go.

But while even cautious officials admit to feeling a spark of excitement, they say it's too soon to relax the partial lockdown. An announcement on possible changes to the current restrictions in the Netherlands is scheduled for Tuesday evening.

The ethnicity of those who have died with coronavirus in English hospitals has been published for the first time.

The breakdown by NHS England, external gave the ethnicity of 12,593 of the 13,918 people known to have died before the weekend.

It states that 18.7% of those who died had Black, Asian and mixed ethnicity (BAME) backgrounds.

The most recent reliable ethnicity data in England and Wales is a little dated, but according to the 2011 census 14% of people in were from ethnic minority backgrounds.

Downing Street says it has commissioned an investigation into the issue.

Jessica Lussenhop
Senior staff writer, BBC News

Image source, Reuters

The number of employees infected with coronavirus at a giant pork processing plant in the US state of South Dakota continues to rise.

According to the state's health department, 748 Smithfield Foods employees have now tested positive, as have 143 people who came into contact with them. That brings the total number of cases linked to the plant to 891, a rise of more than 300 since 15 April.

Last week, the plant became the largest coronavirus hotspot in the US. We spoke to workers, their families and union representatives who say the company put employees' health at risk in a bid to keep the plant open.

In a statement to the BBC, the company said it had taken the appropriate measures.

Read about it here: The untold story of America's biggest outbreak

Image source, Reuters

Thousands of Israeli protesters held a socially distanced protest against the policies of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Wearing face masks, waving flags and holding placards, the protesters gathered on Sunday night in Tel Aviv’s Rabin Square, where they stood at least two metres (6ft) apart.

They condemned what they described as anti-democratic measures taken by the Israeli prime minister during the coronavirus pandemic.

Israel’s parliament has been tasked with forming a unity government after three inconclusive elections plunged the country into a political crisis.

On Monday, Mr Netanyahu and his political rival, Benny Gantz, signed an agreement to form an emergency unity government

Read more: Israel's Netanyahu and Gantz sign unity deal

Image source, Reuters

Maryland’s Republican Governor has purchased 500,000 test kits from South Korea with the help of his Korean-born wife.

Yumi Hogan, who speaks fluent Korean, was up late at night on the phone helping to secure the deal from LabGenomics, the governor said at a press conference on Monday.

Image source, Getty Images

Larry Hogan, a member of President Trump’s own party, has been highly critical of the federal government’s speed in helping states to ramp up testing.

As Hogan announced the new kits at the Annapolis statehouse on Monday, the South Korean flag flew behind him.

A Korea Air flight delivered the tests directly on Saturday, Hogan said, as he spoke alongside a representative from the South Korean embassy.

Image source, Getty Images

Frustrated by social-distancing rules and the economic hardship associated with them, people in some countries have taken to the streets to protest.

Anti-lockdown protests have been staged in several countries, despite clear scientific advice that social distancing and lockdowns save lives.

The US

Hundreds of protesters gathered for rallies against restrictions in several states, including Colorado, Texas and Maryland, over the weekend. Gathering in close proximity in defiance of social-distancing guidelines, the protesters called on governors to reopen economies shut by coronavirus.

Brazil

A protest against stay-at-home orders issued by state governors was held outside army headquarters in the capital, Brasilia, on Sunday.

A surprise guest was Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who has repeatedly downplayed the threat of the virus. Bolsonaro has clashed in recent weeks with state governors who have imposed lockdowns, denouncing the measures as "dictatorial".

Image source, Getty Images

Russia

Riot police in southern Russia were deployed on Monday to disperse hundreds of people protesting against coronavirus restrictions.

Demonstrators chanted outside government headquarters in Vladikavkaz, the capital of North Ossetia.

Police have arrested a protest organiser, an opera singer called Vadim Cheldiev, who says he doesn't believe the coronavirus exists.

India

Last week,India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended a national lockdown until at least 3 May, causing anger among migrant workers who have been left jobless by the restrictions.

Hours after the announcement, clashes between migrant workers and police broke out in Mumbai. Thousands of jobless migrant workers then gathered at a railway station, demanding food and transport to their homes.

Image source, Getty Images

Nations ease restrictions, asylum seekers contract the virus and the mayor of “corona island” resigns. Here’s the latest from Europe:

• Countries are easing their lockdown measures, with Germany reopening some shops, Norway’s kindergarten pupils returning and hairdressers back in business in Denmark
• Italy is still not easing its lockdown, but the latest data released on Monday showed the lowest number of new confirmed cases in a month. Deaths rose by 454, a slight increase compared to Sunday’s recorded figure
• Estonia's island of Saaremaa hosted a volleyball team from Milan at the start of March and has since been dubbed “corona island” by residents, after emerging as the epicentre of the country’s outbreak. Mayor Madis Kallas has now quit days after a BBC report about the island – you can watch it here
• A refugee hostel in Portugal’s capital Lisbon has seen a major outbreak, with 138 asylum seekers out of 180 total residents testing positive. The news comes the same day a 28-year-old pregnant Somali woman tested positive for Covid-19 in Greece, at a hotel which is also hosting asylum seekers

Latest figures released earlier show 4,676 new cases of coronavirus in the UK in a day.

That is significantly lower than the 5,850 reported on Sunday - which saw the second highest daily increase in new infections since the outbreak began.

Meanwhile, a further 449 people have died with coronavirus in hospitals across the country.

But health officials warned that there can be a delay in the numbers of deaths reported over the weekend - with some hard-pressed hospitals understandably taking longer to record and report their own figures.

Use our updated search tool and charts to see how many cases and deaths there have been in your area.

US oil prices have dropped to negative values for the first time in history, as global demand dries up as a result of the coronavirus.

May futures' contracts for the main benchmark - West Texas Intermediate - closed at -$37.63 a barrel. This means producers are paying buyers to take crude oil that they cannot sell and fear they won't be able to store.

The falls are partly based on warnings that storage capacity could be filled within weeks. They come despite a landmark deal reached by oil producers earlier this month to cut world output and keep prices up.

European oil prices have also fallen, but not to such an extent, as oil production continues to exceed the massively reduced demand.

The UK's two largest rugby stadiums have reopened today after being transformed to help tackle the coronavirus pandemic.

Cardiff's Principality Stadium has been turned into a 2,000-bed field hospital.

Opened by Prince Charles in a pre-recorded video message on the stadium's big screens, it is the biggest hospital in Wales.

In London, a drive-through coronavirus testing facility has opened at Twickenham Stadium for key workers and NHS staff.

Image source, CVUHB

Africa has seen a sharp rise in coronavirus cases in recent days, after the World Health Organization (WHO) warned last week that the continent could become the pandemic's next epicentre.

However, some countries which went into lockdown earlier this month are now looking at easing their social-distancing rules.

Here are some of the latest developments:

• South Africa reported hundreds of new cases over the weekend, bringing the total to more than 3,000 as a fourth week of nationwide lockdown began

• On Sunday, Djibouti reported 114 new cases, bringing the total to 846, while Zimbabwe extended its lockdown for two more weeks
• Meanwhile, Ghana lifted a three-week targeted lockdown on two major regions, including the capital Accra. In a TV address, the president said some restrictions were being relaxed because testing had improved

Follow the latest updates on the BBC's Africa live page

Image source, Getty Images

Mark Lowen
BBC News, Rome

Image source, Getty Images

The Italian authorities have called today’s figures “extremely encouraging”.

The number of people currently infected with Coronavirus has fallen for the first time – just by 20, but it’s an important milestone, despite the fact that there were fewer tests than the previous day.

Total cases, which includes those who have died and recovered, rose by just over 1.2%, the smallest proportional increase since the outbreak began. There were, however, 454 deaths – slightly up on Sunday’s figure.

While the infection numbers are cause for optimism, the daily death toll is proving stubbornly high.

Intensive care figures also show a downward trend, with occupancy now at its lowest level in a month. Italy is by no means out of the woods. But it’s on the right path – and it now feels like its sacrifices are paying off.

When scientists first sounded the alarm about the potentially huge impact of coronavirus, they warned it could spread exponentially.

That means that while cases start off small in number, they quickly grow at an incredibly fast rate. You can see that clearly in this BBC chart.

It took more than two months for cases to reach one million, but just 13 days to reach two million.

Today the number of confirmed cases globally is more than 2,420,000, according to figures by the US-based Johns Hopkins University.

Image source, Getty Images

Norwegian Air has announced that four subsidiary companies supplying it with pilots and cabin crew in Sweden and Denmark have filed for bankruptcy.

The move puts nearly 5,000 jobs at risk, as Norwegian grapples with the impact of coronavirus on the airline industry.

The firm has already cut 85% of its operations, and grounded all but 11 planes in its fleet of 160.

The announcement gives an insight into the complications of the industry. Most of Norwegian's crew and pilots are hired indirectly - as a result, the fate of their careers isn't decided by the airline, but instead by subsidiary companies which are jointly owned by airline.

In a statement, CEO Jacob Schram called the bankruptcies "heartbreaking".

UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak said earlier he "wasn't convinced" it was a good idea for the government to increase the guarantee for small business loans to 100%, up from 80%

But Labour is asking him to look again. Shadow chancellor Anneliese Dodds says the UK has seen very low numbers of struggling businesses accessing the government backed loans compared with other countries.

If action is not taken, the UK will see a "crisis of insolvency" among small businesses, she warns.

She also says the government needs to provide regular updates on the job retention scheme now it has started.

Separately, Labour MP Rachel Reeves has asked manufacturers to get in touch if they have not heard back from the government about offers to supply protective equipment for the NHS.

Bethany Bell
News Correspondent

Image source, Getty Images

It has been about a week since the Austrian government began easing restrictions.

There were long queues at some DIY stores, as people went out to buy home improvement supplies and plants for their gardens. But many other little shops reported a slower start to business. Some customers are afraid of infection; others have lost their jobs and are worried about money.

Strict social distancing measures remain in place and face masks are mandatory in all shops.

Peter Buchmüller from the Austrian Chamber of Commerce says many small shops are achieving just “10 to 20 percent of their normal turnover”.

Covid-19 infections in Austria are increasing at a rate of less than 1% daily.

But Austria’s Health Minister Rudi Anschober has warned against complacency, and urged Austrians to heed the lockdown rules.

Researchers in Vienna have found that Austrians’ average range of movement is now back to more than 12km (7.5 miles) a day – near the pre-crisis level.

Image source, Reuters

In an emotional briefing amid rising tensions with the US, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus insisted his agency had not withheld information about the coronavirus from any nation.

The WHO's handling of the pandemic has been criticised by US President Donald Trump, who suspended funding to the UN's global health body last week, saying it had failed to manage the outbreak properly and been too trusting of China.

At the televised briefing, Dr Tedros said about 15 representatives of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had been seconded to the WHO since January and had been kept informed as the situation developed.

"We don't have secrets in WHO, and as soon as we get information we pass it on - because it's about lives," Dr Tedros told the news conference.

He then warned that political disagreements could hamper efforts to save lives.

"You know where I come from - I know war. I know poverty. I know disease. I know how people suffer in all conditions. I know how people are killed because of poverty," Dr Tedros, who is Ethiopian, said.

"Maybe people who don't know all this... maybe they've had an easy ride in life. Maybe they don't know what war means, what poverty means. That's why I'm emotional."

France has become the latest country to record more than 20,000 deaths related to coronavirus, a toll its director of health has called "symbolic and painful".

As of Monday, there have been 20,265 virus-related deaths in France - 12,513 of them in hospitals and 7,752 in nursing homes, Jérôme Salomon said.

"Tonight, our country is crossing a painful symbolic milestone," he said.

Three other countries have so far recorded more than 20,000 deaths - Spain, Italy and the US.

The announcement of the winner of the International Booker Prize has been postponed - so readers can get hold of copies of the six shortlisted books.

The £50,000 award - for the best novel translated into English, shared equally between author and translator - was due to be announced on 19 May. But organisers said the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic was making it too difficult for customers to buy the shortlisted books.

Authors and publishers can typically look forward to a sales boost when the winner is announced.

A new date for the announcement wasn't set.

Last year Jokha Alharthi became the first Arabic-language writer to win the £50,000 ($63,000) prize - and promptly split the sum with her translator.

Michelle Roberts
Health editor, BBC News online

Many countries are taking tentative steps to ease lockdown restrictions, despite still seeing more daily infections and deaths than when the measures were introduced.

If that sounds risky, it is. Go too soon and too fast and you could get a massive resurgence of coronavirus - the “second wave” that experts fear. But keeping businesses closed and people shut in their homes for many months is harmful to the economy and society. Judging the right time to lift measures, and which ones, is an educated guess. There is no precedent.

The countries that go first - such as China, where the pandemic began - will be the test bed for others to learn from. For that, you need reliable data on how many people are becoming infected, where and how.

Even with good data and lots of testing and tracing, there is a lag between what you record and what is happening on the ground. The infection takes days to cause symptoms and weeks to cause hospitalisations, which makes it hard to identify and stop new outbreaks. Some people are silent carriers and spreaders of the virus.

Eliminating the threat of coronavirus without social distancing isn’t possible yet, particularly with no vaccine available. Planning exit strategies is a delicate balancing act for every nation involved. And even though many are hoping for a return to normality, life after lockdown will not be business as usual.