Image source, Reuters

France becomes the latest European nation to further ease its lockdown. Here’s the latest from Europe:

• On Tuesday, France officially entered Phase 2 of its lockdown easing. Bars and restaurants reopen – though only the terraces in Paris - a 100km (62-mile) limit on travel has been lifted, and more schools are restarting classes
• Russia has confirmed 8,863 new cases and 182 new deaths, bringing its total number of infections to 423,741. The capital Moscow began lifting its lockdown on Monday, but some say the decision was political
• Czech Republic officials have announced a new traffic light system for travel. Europe is divided into green, amber and red countries with different movement restrictions. Sweden and the UK are both designated red for now
• Montenegro is due to declare its epidemic over. Provided no new infections are reported overnight, it will have gone 28 days without any new cases

Image source, Getty Images

There were 2,589 deaths involving coronavirus in England and Wales registered in the week ending 22 May - the lowest weekly number recorded in the last seven weeks, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Some 12,288 deaths were registered in the nations during the same period - a drop of 2,285 from the previous week but still 2,348 more than the five-year average, the ONS said.

In total, the ONS said there have been 286,759 deaths to date in England and Wales this year - 51,466 more than the five-year average.

Of the deaths registered by 22 May, 43,837 mentioned Covid-19 on the death certificate, which was 15.3% of all deaths.

Out of all deaths involving Covid-19 in England and Wales registered up to 22 May:

• 64% (28,159 deaths) occurred in hospital
• 29% (12,739) took place in care homes
• 5% (1,991) in private homes
• 1% (582) in hospices
• 0.4% (197) in other communal establishments
• and 0.4% (169) elsewhere

This means the number of excess deaths across the UK since the coronavirus outbreak began now stands at 61,795 (see chart below).

Last week, the National Records of Scotland reported 4,618 excess deaths in Scotland between 23 March and 24 May, while the Northern Ireland Statistics & Research Agency put the figure for Northern Ireland at 869 excess deaths between 21 March and 22 May.All figures are based on death registrations.

The UK government has denied reports that a review into the impact of coronavirus on the black and minority ethnic (BAME) community is being delayed due to "worries" around "current global events".

A spokesman for the Department of Health said ministers received initial findings on Monday.

"They are being rapidly considered and a report will be published this week," he said.

"It is not true to say this has been delayed due to global events.”

Sky News reported that the review was being delayed until Wednesday, and that concerns over it being published amid the ongoing protests in the US over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis also played a part in the findings not being released on time.

The Public Health England review had originally been promised by the end of May.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said the review should be published and "action taken now" to address the disproportionate impact of the virus on BAME communities.

Image source, EPA

Officials in Bangladesh say a 71-year-old man has become the first Rohingya person living in the refugee camps in the south-east to die of coronavirus.

A health official said the victim died in an isolation centre run by the medical charity MSF. He was from Kutupalong, the largest of the camps, in Cox's Bazar district bordering Myanmar.

So far 31 Rohingya refugees have been confirmed to have coronavirus in the most densely populated refugee camp in the world.

Nearly a million Rohingya Muslims who fled violence in Myanmar are living in Bangladesh.

Robin Brant
BBC News, Shanghai

The lockdown is long over, the rail and roads re-opened weeks ago, Wuhan’s tourist authority is back on social media encouraging people to come to the city. But Wuhan’s doctors are still dying.

Dr Hu Weifeng was among the first to recognise and treat the new type of coronavirus that caused Covid-19. His demise was a long, slow and disfiguring one. Over the last four months Hu was treated in intensive care, and video showed him having dialysis and breathing through a tracheotomy.

At one point last month he was well enough to be released. But his condition reversed.

Pictures of his bespectacled face, dramatically darkened by his ill-health, were shared widely on social media.

Image source, thePaper.cn

His death in the early hours of Tuesday morning, according to several reports in China’s state run media, marks a grim conclusion. It’s possible he is the last to die of a feted group: the doctors at Wuhan Central Hospital who contracted the disease after they started treated patients at the end of December.

Dr Hu is the sixth doctor at this hospital to die from illnesses caused by Covid-19. More than 230 staff there were also infected, according to official reported numbers.

Questions about why those at the tip of the spear at the Wuhan outbreak were not better protected, and why colleagues of Dr Hu’s who raised concerns were punished by the local police, have been dealt with by China’s propagandists.

The doctors who died before Hu are already official national heroes. Aged just 43 he is now likely to join them, posthumously.

Image source, Reuters

Indonesia has cancelled the Haj pilgrimage this year due to concerns over the spread of coronavirus.

Indonesia is the world's most populous Muslim-majority nation, and hundreds of thousands usually make the trip to Saudi Arabia, where Islam's two holiest sites - Mecca and Medina - are located.

Saudi authorities had already said the Haj and Umrah pilgrimages would remain suspended until further notice. Even if the suspension was lifted, Indonesia would not have had enough time to prepare, local media reported. , external

The average wait time for the Haj is 20 years due to a quota system. The quota for Indonesians this year was more than 200,000.

In a television address, Indonesia's religious affairs minister Fachrul Razi said: "The government has now decided to cancel the Hajj trip for 2020. This is truly a difficult decision for us to make and we know many people are upset."

Indonesia has seen more than 1,600 confirmed deaths from coronavirus.

Empty streets, DIY haircuts and a giant NHS show of support in London's Piccadilly Circus.

These are among the 200 images that best reflect the nation's lockdown, according to Historic England.

More than 3,000 pictures were submitted by the public during a week-long appeal, with the final selection being added to the Historic England archive, external.

• See more here

Image source, DONNA DUKE-LLANDE

Image source, Laura Dally

Image source, ALUN BULL

Image source, ALLA BOGDANOVIC

Image source, EPA

As Japan eases its lockdown restrictions, Tokyo's Imperial Palace has reopened its grounds. People are allowed back into the park as of this Tuesday, but the number of visitors is limited to 50 each in the morning and afternoon.

Japan has managed to keep its coronavirus cases relatively low, although it's also been criticised for not doing enough testing. And since the state of emergency has been lifted, there have been a few regional spikes - the latest in Tokyo itself, which today reported its highest daily increase in about three weeks.

Germany's handling of the pandemic has attracted international attention.

However its next move from lockdown has resulted in squabbling between regional leaders and the lifting of restrictions faster than Chancellor Angela Merkel would have liked, the BBC's Jenny Hill reports.

Unable to agree on a common strategy, the leaders of Germany's 16 states have instituted a patchwork of rules and regulations, with people in one state able to use the gym again while in another region, fitness centres remain closed.

It's fuelled an intense public debate about the "Lockerung" or relaxation policy, with many fearing Germany could squander its initial success.

Read more on Germany's lockdown debate here.

Image source, Getty Images

The international crew for Avatar 2 have landed in New Zealand to film for the sequel to the box office hit.

Hollywood director James Cameron's producer posted a photo of the two of them at Wellington International Airport over the weekend.

"Made it to New Zealand. Our 14-day government supervised self-isolation now begins," Jon Landau wrote in an Instagram post, external.

Landau also posted a photo of the set last month, saying he was excited to get back to work in New Zealand.

The decision to allow the crew comes despite a ban on all overseas visitors, in a bid to curtail the spread of Covid-19. Following a timely lockdown, the country has seen around 1,500 cases and just 22 deaths.

However New Zealand's tourism industry, which depends on overseas travellers, has taken a financial hit. Businesses employing overseas workers have also suffered, external, so the decision to allow the international crew to enter hasn't been welcomed by all.

Any relaxation over the coming months of the UK's 14-day quarantine rule for people entering the country "will depend on progress", a government minister has said.

Housing minister Simon Clarke told BBC Breakfast the measure was a "temporary, time-limited matter", but said it was "absolutely vital...we do this as long as required".

He added that it was necessary to have the rule in place for now to avoid increasing the risk of a second spike "with new cases coming into the UK... [when] we are starting to get numbers coming down quite strongly in our own country".

Asked whether he had any summer holidays planned, Mr Clarke said he had been set to travel to Jersey in August but said, "I haven't got my bucket and spade out yet."

• Ministers 'looking at ways to relax travel quarantine rule'

Meanwhile, former transport minister Stephen Hammond has called for the quarantine measure to be scrapped in favour of so-called air bridges between low-risk countries.

The Tory MP told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that air bridges would be a "sensible, targeted response".

Image source, Reuters

If you're just waking up and joining us in the UK, then good morning. Here are the latest headlines on the coronavirus pandemic.

• The government is looking at ways to relax the 14-day quarantine rule for people entering the UK over coming months
• However, Spain's tourism minister has cast doubt on an early return by UK holidaymakers to Spanish beaches, saying British coronavirus figures "still have to improve"
• Some primary schools in England reopened on Monday after 10 weeks, but a survey says half of parents are still wary about coronavirus and are not sending their children in
• Horse racing also resumed behind closed doors yesterday, and professional snooker returned to action in Milton Keynes
• Oxfam has announced it will begin reopening its network of charity shops in England from 15 June
• And demand for lettings is up by 22% compared to last year according to property giant Rightmove, with lockdown break-ups, job losses and urgent relocations thought to have led to the surge

"So if you've lost someone you've loved,

You take the sound of their laugh, and keep it in the depths of your heart

Because we are keeping them alive."

Watch British poet Hussain Manawer read his tribute to coronavirus victims.

Julie Yoon
BBC Korean service

In South Korea, cluster infections at small church gatherings are putting health authorities on edge ahead of tomorrow’s further school reopening.

According to health authorities and local governments, at least 40 cases have been traced to small church gatherings in Incheon and Gyeonggi province this week.

The Central Disaster Management Headquarters said on Tuesday that 24 out of 30 participants at a local church in Incheon tested positive of the virus.

“Participants of the Bible study were in a small room, singing and praying without wearing masks while sitting close to each other,” said Son Young-rae, a senior epidemiological strategist at the government’s Central Disaster Management Headquarters. “And this has led to 73% of the participants being infected with the virus.”

South Korea has had 11,541 confirmed cases of the virus and reported 272 deaths. It has slowed the spread from several hundred new daily infections in late February and early March to around 10 per day in late April.

However, the number of cases has jumped in recent weeks as the country began easing virus restrictions.

In effort to curb the spread of the virus, Incheon has banned gatherings at some 4,200 churches and other religious facilities.

Image source, AFP/Getty Images

Strengthening India's economy while it battles coronavirus is a top priority, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told business leaders on Tuesday.

"We will definitely get our growth back. India will get its growth back," he told the Confederation of Indian Industry’s annual session by video link.

More and more businesses are starting to open up across India as it slowly exits one of the world's harshest lockdowns. Enforced in March, the strict curbs squeezed the economy as industries were shut overnight.

Starting from 8 June, restaurants, hotels, shopping centres and places of worship will be allowed to re-open in many areas in the first stage of a three-phase plan.

But areas with high numbers of Covid-19 cases will remain under tight lockdown. India has confirmed more than 190,000 infections and 5,598 deaths, according to data from the health ministry.

Plans to relax quarantine rules for people entering the UK and the return of some primary school pupils dominate the UK front pages on Tuesday.

Read more here.

Image source, Telegraph

Image source, Guardian

Image source, Daily Mirror

Image source, i

Image source, EPA

Japan's capital Tokyo has seen more than 30 new cases over the past day, authorities have said. It's the first time in almost three weeks that the number is that high.

Japan has just lifted a state of emergency after cases had been low for some time. But there's already been a new cluster in the southwest of the country, and there are fears the easing of restrictions could lead to a second wave.

Overall, Japan has recorded more than 16,000 infections and fewer than 1,000 deaths.

Andreas Illmer
Singapore

Image source, EPA

Singapore has South East Asia's highest number of confirmed infections, more than 35,000 cases. Most of those are among the migrant worker population- workers mainly from Bangladesh and India who are employed largely in construction and shipping, and are housed in often cramped dormitories.

Now, the government has announced it will build new dorms with improved conditions. Overall, there are more than 300,000 such workers in the small city state - who were all quarantined by the government - and by the end of the year, there's to be additional space for about 60,000 workers.

Authorities say with the new dorms in place, they'll be able to "decant workers from the existing dormitories and to undertake major upgrading to these".

Activist Alex Au of local NGO TWC2 says it's a good thing that some serious action is being taken but warns the new standards are still short of what they are advocating for.

"We must also be concerned that new dorms will not be built like internment camps the way current dorms are with barbed-wire fencing and strict controls over movement. Singapore needs to respect the human rights of migrant workers," Mr Lau told the BBC.

He also urges there should be more economic support for the workers who - unlike citizens - don't get subsidies for housing.

Image source, EPA

South Korea was one of the model countries in tackling the virus. Several small clusters have stoked fear of a resurgence of the pandemic but the gradual easing of the lockdown continues. This beach in Busan has reopened - though it doesn't seem terribly busy.

Image source, AFP

In India, the lockdown is being eased despite infections still going up. This hairdresser in Chennai has now been allowed to reopen. Many businesses and workplaces are already open, construction has re-started, markets are crowded and parks are filling up. Soon, hotels, restaurants, malls, places of worship, schools and colleges will also reopen.

Image source, Reuters

Singapore is also very slowly starting to ease its lockdown. Schools resume classes for graduating years but students have to abide by strict social distancing rules both in class and around the school premises.

Image source, EPA

In Latin America however, the pandemic is still heading for its peak, the WHO warns. In Mexico, the death toll has just gone above 10,000 while Brazil has more than 500,000 confirmed infections. Despite warnings, several countries are beginning to reopen their economies.

Geeta Pandey
BBC News, Delhi

Image source, Getty Images

Major Atul Dev, a retired Indian army veteran, is on the warpath - against his Residents' Welfare Association.

Commonly known as the RWAs, these associations are a unique feature of Indian urban living. They are responsible for managing the day-to-day affairs of specific residential areas and generally set guidelines - relating to issues like security - for people to follow.

But ever since India went into a lockdown to halt the spread of coronavirus, many are being accused of overreach, although they say they are only acting in the interest of everyone's safety.

In recent days, the Indian press has used unflattering phrases such as "little Hitlers" and "tin pot dictators" to describe them.

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