New York Mayor Bill de Blasio has apologised after a series of tweets castigating the "absolutely unacceptable" funeral gathering for a Jewish rabbi in the city's Williamsburg neighbourhood.

De Blasio personally oversaw the break-up of the Hasidic Jewish funeral on Tuesday night before taking to Twitter. Images on social media appeared show hundreds of mourners gathering for the funeral of Rabbi Chaim Mertz.

"What I saw WILL NOT be tolerated so long as we are fighting the Coronavirus," he wrote. "My message to the Jewish communities, and all communities, is this simple: the time for warnings has passed."

Jewish leaders in New York quickly criticised de Blasio for appearing to target a single religious community.

"Did the Mayor of NYC really just single out one specific ethnic community (a community that has been the target of increasing hate crimes in HIS city) as being noncompliant??" wrote city councillor Chaim Deutsch, who represents a predominantly Jewish constituency, on Twitter.

On Wednesday, de Blasio apologised, saying his intention was not to be "hurtful", but added that he had "no regrets about calling out this danger".

Image source, Getty Images

The governor of Kentucky has apologised to a man named Tupac Shakur, after he filed for unemployment and was wrongly labelled a prankster.

Alas for fans of the popular US rapper, whose 1996 death sparked years of conspiracy theories, it appears the applicant wasn't him - but a man who changed his name by deed poll.

"We had somebody apply for unemployment for Tupac Shakur here in Kentucky," Governor Andy Beshear said. "And that person may have thought they were being funny, they probably did."

The criticism came as a shock to Tupac Malik Shakur, 46, who reportedly lives in Lexington, Kentucky, and had worked as a cook before the coronavirus pandemic closed down restaurants.

US President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping of China have kept in very close contact and compared notes over coronavirus, China's ambassador to the UK has told the BBC.

Earlier this week, Donald Trump told reporters he was not happy with China, saying he thinks it could have stopped coronavirus at the source.

"I just want to let Americans know that China is not the enemy of the United States," Liu Xiaoming told Hardtalk's Stephen Sackur.

"This virus is the enemy of the United States, they need to find the right target."

Image source, Getty Images

A town in Sweden is spreading chicken manure in its main park to dissuade revellers from celebrating a spring festival during the coronavirus outbreak.

Lund, a university town in the southern region of Skane, has asked people not to gather in the park to mark Walpurgis Eve on Thursday - but fears some will defy the advice. The popular, but unofficial, celebration can attract up to 30,000 people from all over Sweden.

"Sitting in a park that stinks of chicken manure is not a pleasant experience," town council chairman Philip Sandberg wrote on Facebook.

The Swedish government has avoided imposing harsh lockdown measures to control the spread of coronavirus but has banned public events of more than 50 people. The country has recorded about 20,300 cases and 2,460 deaths.

Reality Check

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab says 52,429 people were tested for coronavirus yesterday. This takes the government just over halfway to meeting its goal of 100,000 daily coronavirus tests by the end of April, with only one day to go.

Up until recently, the government was carrying out about 20,000 tests a day, so this means it has significantly ramped up testing numbers. It says testing capacity stands at about 73,000.

However, it could take a couple of days or more before we know if Thursday’s 100,000 testing target has been met.

The government has said that there is a “time lag” in collating some of the figures – such as home testing kits.

We explain more here about the process of going to get a test.

Reality Check

Image source, Getty Images

"We have a much much flatter curve than any country in Europe or perhaps any countries of the world," Harry Theoharis, Greek minister for Tourism, told the BBC.

Yes, Greece has had only a small number of deaths and confirmed cases compared to the rest of Europe, despite having a relatively elderly population and the country’s economic and social fabric enduring years of austerity.

There have been 138 recorded deaths from Covid-19 in Greece as of 29th April. That’s a mortality rate of 1.29 per 100,000 people - much lower than other European countries such as Italy, Spain, France and the UK, although both Bulgaria and Albania have even lower death rates than Greece, according to data from Johns Hopkins University, external.

Greece has tested around six out every 1,000 people – far less than many other European countries. This may explain in part why it has recorded fewer confirmed infections, but it’s also the case that its death rate remains remarkably low.

It’s important to note that countries record deaths differently so it can be difficult to make exact comparisons.

The Greek government has been credited with moving much earlier than other European countries to close schools, cancel mass events, and quarantine people arriving from abroad.

James Gallagher
Health and science correspondent, BBC News

Image source, Getty Images

Has the first treatment for coronavirus been found? The answer is maybe.

The pharmaceutical company Gilead has put out a statement, but no evidence, about its drug remdesivir.

Remdesivir is an anti-viral that was originally developed as a treatment for Ebola.

The company says there is “positive data” from a trial run by the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the study has “met its primary endpoint”.

To strip out the jargon – they’re saying it works. What we don’t know is how well, in whom or what the strength of that evidence is.

The only hint is remdesivir was more effective when given early. The company said: “62% of patients treated early were able to be discharged from the hospital, compared with 49% percent of patients who were treated late.”

But the announcement came as the Lancet medical journal published the details of a remdesivir trial in China.

That showed the drug did not improve outcomes, although it was not finished because there were insufficient patients as lockdown was so successful.

We’re going to have to wait for the full US data before we know for sure.

Fergus Walsh
Medical correspondent

A trial of potential treatments for Covid-19 has now enrolled more than 8,000 hospital patients throughout the UK.

The RECOVERY trial, led by the University of Oxford, is testing five existing medicines. These include a combination HIV therapy and an anti-malarial drug, both of which are being examined to see if they can halt replication of the virus inside the body.

There are also treatments which aim to reduce inflammation, and dampen the immune response, which can go haywire in patients with severe disease.

The trial has enrolled patients in nearly 170 hospitals in the UK, and will seek to find out if the drugs reduce mortality.

“The more patients we can enrol, the quicker we will get results.The trial has broken many records in terms of size, it’s quite incredible,” the Principal Investigator Prof Peter Horby told the BBC.

The trial is by far the biggest in the world looking at possible medicines for coronavirus.

A global trial of Covid-19 treatments, launched by the World Health Organization, confirmed today that it have recruited more than 1,200 patients. The Solidarity trial will involve more than 100 countries.

Jeff Pike, 60, got coronavirus six weeks ago. He’s a patient at Addenbrookes hospital in Cambridge.

Jeff, who has had cancer twice, is now part of the RECOVERY trial and another study at Cambridge.

“Being part of the trials probably won’t help me, but it might help those that follow. We need some science at this moment,” he said.

Image source, PA Media

We've just finished listening to the government's daily coronavirus briefing, led by Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab. Here are the key points:

• The number of people who have died with coronavirus in the UK has passed 26,000, as official figures include deaths in the community, such as in care homes, for the first time. The deaths counted are people who died after testing positive for the virus. Read our health correspondent’s analysis of what the new figures mean here
• Mr Raab said 52,429 tests took place on Tuesday - ministers have pledged to hit 100,000 tests a day by Thursday

• The number of people going to hospital is falling in all regions, but the UK is still passing through the peak of the virus, Public Health England’s Prof Yvonne Doyle said
• Asked by a member of the public whether lives could be saved by moving some care home residents to Nightingale hospitals, Mr Raab said the use of the new hospitals was "under constant discussion"
• Prof Doyle warned there has been a "slightly worrying" increase in road traffic, with Great Britain seeing the largest uptick since 23 March
• Asked whether the government will relax rules preventing certain immigrants from accessing benefits, Mr Raab said matter was being kept "under constant review" by the Home Office.

Image source, Getty Images

New York State reported 330 coronavirus deaths in the past 24 hours, a muted decline from the 335 the day before. New hospitalisations and intubations have also continued a steady downward trend.

"The decline has been slow at best", Governor Andrew Cuomo said. And deaths are "still disgustingly high".

What else did Cuomo say at his daily briefing?

• Some counties in New York - mostly upstate - will be able to resume elective surgeries as long as 30% of hospital beds and ICU beds remain open
• New York will expand antibody testing for its first responders. After 2,000 tests so far, 17.1% of New York fire department and EMT workers and 10.5% of police officers have tested positive for the Covid-19 antibody
• The state will also provide tests to 1,000 transport workers. Cuomo said he has directed the state's transit system to disinfect every subway car every night to limit the spread
• Cuomo once again lambasted top Republican Mitch McConnell for his suggestion that states should not be "bailed out" as the virus continues to crush the US economy. "How long are you going to play the American people and assume they're stupid?" Cuomo said, adding that his state pays $29 billion into federal coffers every year.

Image source, EPA

Europe grapples with travel bans and environmentalists clash with Spanish authorities over a bleached beach. Here’s the latest from Europe:

• Lockdowns are starting to ease across the continent, but governments are struggling with movement of people. Tourism and airline industries are struggling, while local authorities are worrying about how to handle summer holidays. You can read more here
• Authorities at a Spanish coastal report have apologised for spraying a beach with bleach. Tractors sprayed the chemicals along the beach in a bid to protect children from coronavirus, but environmentalists say the move caused “brutal damage”
• Swiss children under the age of 10 are now allowed to hug their grandparents. Health officials there believe young children don’t transmit the virus, but cautioned against babysitting or prolonged visits
• The virus has forced authorities in Greece to rapidly digitise the state, so people can access services without leaving their homes. As part of these digital reforms one minister has proposed banning fax machines (yes, you read that right) in government offices

Image source, PA Media

The second question from a member of the public called Bob.

He asks whether lives could be saved in care homes if some residents are transferred immediately to Nightingale hospitals, potentially with the help of the military.

In response, Mr Raab says the new Nightingale hospitals set up across the UK have been amazing and making greater use of them is "under constant discussion" to manage future demand.

With that, Mr Raab brings the press conference to an end.

Image source, Reuters

The next question is about social distancing in schools, with the panel asked when they will return to some kind of normal and whether home schooling will become the norm.

Prof Van Tam says he is the father of two boys and he knows what a strain the current situation is having on parents.

While relaxing the current restrictions on schools "is in the mix", he says the scientific evidence "is not settled" and any decision would have to be proceeded by painstaking research.

Asked whether four and five-year-olds can safely stay two metres apart in classroom settings, he concedes that would be "very tricky".

There's a question from the public - Matthew from Surrey asks why those arriving into the UK are not being asked to quarantine on arrival.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab says the evidence shows this would not make a "significant material difference" to the spread of the virus.

However, he adds the measure "may become more relevant" as the epidemic progresses.

The Mirror's Dan Bloom asks whether deaths in care homes may have been avoided if more rigorous testing and screening had been carried out and residents who were discharged from hospital had been routinely tested before 16 April.

Mr Raab says the government will learn lessons from this unique and unprecedented public health crisis, including for care homes.

He says the objective has been to monitor and manage the "ebb and flow" of the transmission of the virus in care homes.

Prof Doyle says it is an interesting question. She suggests a high mortality rate in care homes was to be expected given that over-75s were particularly vulnerable to high doses of the virus.

However, she says a future review of the handling of the crisis will look at the "structure of care homes".

There's a question on whether the government will relax rules preventing certain immigrants from accessing benefits.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab says this matter is being kept "under constant review" by the Home Office.

He says ministers want to be as "sensible in our approach as we can be".

Nick Triggle
Health Correspondent

Interesting to hear Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab say “asymptomatic” transmission has been a big driver of outbreaks in care homes.

He believes staff and visitors - when they were allowed - have unwittingly brought the virus into care homes because they were infected but did not show symptoms.

Asymptomatic transmission is one of the great unknowns when it comes to coronavirus.

The concern was one of the reasons the government announced this week that all care home residents and staff will be entitled to tests even if they do not show symptoms.

Mobile units run by the Army and postal testing kits will be crucial in ensuring this happens.

It will only be when this does happen that the government and care sector will be able to get a handle on these outbreaks.

There's a question about whether the virus spreads more easily indoors as opposed to outdoors, and what this potentially means for the lockdown measures.

Prof Jonathan Van Tam says scientists will know more when they get "more data" on what is a new disease.

However, he says it is "absolutely clear" that outdoor environments are "less problematic" for virus transmission.

He adds that evidence on the relative risk of outdoor activities is being kept "under detailed review".

But he cautions ministers will have to be "extremely painstaking" in relaxing rules in this area - warning the virus will "absolutely come back" and be with us for "quite some time".

Mr Raab is asked how many of the government's five tests for easing the lockdown are being met right now.

The foreign secretary says he does not know and will not know until the government's committee of scientific advisers, known as Sage, have reviewed the latest evidence in early May.

But he goes on to stress that the NHS has clearly not been overwhelmed due to the action that has been taken.

There's a question about whether today's latest figures show deaths in care homes are increasing.

Prof Yvonne Doyle says we "don't think we can say that quite yet", although the number of deaths so far may go up due to reporting lags.

Dominic Raab says reducing infections in care homes has been a "challenge" and the government has been clear on that.

Prof Jonathan Van Tam, the deputy chief medical officer for England, says a figure for "excess" deaths will also eventually be available.

He says this will be "highly comparable" with equivalent figures in other countries and will provide a "better answer".