Rachel Schraer
BBC Health Reporter

Scientists are to test whether an experimental drug can prevent potentially deadly blood clots associated with Covid-19.

The trial, funded by the British Heart Foundation, will test the theory the clots are caused by a hormone imbalance triggered by coronavirus infection.

It will become one of several drugs currently being trialled to prevent the disease's worst effects.

A third of hospitalised coronavirus patients develop dangerous blood clots.

The drug, TRV027, works to rebalance hormones involved in blood pressure, water and salt.

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Many schools in England have stayed open throughout the pandemic in some fashion, providing education to key workers' children and the most vulnerable.

Now classrooms are set to look fuller again as some Year 10 and Year 12 pupils head back to school after three months of online lessons.

So how are they - and their teachers - feeling?

Weeks after India eased what was arguably the world's harshest lockdown, and four months after its first recorded Covid-19 infection, its case number is skyrocketing.

Should the spike in cases worry India? Is India's low death rate misleading? And what lies ahead?

The BBC's Soutik Biswas took a look at these questions.

• Click here to read the full story here

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Nat and Emily have been working as fruit and veg pickers after they both lost their jobs during the coronavirus pandemic.

One had never set foot on a farm before, and the other is almost a farming veteran.

We met the Brits becoming fruit and veg pickers to help with this year's harvest.

When the world began to shut down to try and control coronavirus, we interviewed many of you to see how you were coping.

Now, we've gone back to ask: how did you change during lockdown and what did you learn?

Musician Laurie Wright, of Cheltenham, was in recovery for alcohol and drug addiction when lockdown started.

"Lockdown on the whole was OK," he says. "I raised £1,750 for the NHS by live streaming every night and selling my music and merch."

"I learned that you don't need to be in London or even out of the house any more to build a fan base," he adds. "Which was cool but slightly scary that the world has turned this way."

You can read more lockdown stories here.

Image source, Getty Images

India is to convert another 500 railway carriages to create 8,000 more beds for coronavirus patients in Delhi, amid a surge in infections.

Home Minister Amit Shah announced a package of new emergency measures for the capital on Sunday, including a rapid increase in testing for Covid-19. Nursing homes will also be requisitioned.

The total number of 320,922 officially confirmed cases puts India fourth in the world - after the US, Brazil and Russia - in the pandemic.

The death toll in India stands at 9,195, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University from official sources.

India began converting railway carriages into quarantine or isolation wards in April, when large parts of the railway network were suspended owing to the pandemic.

• Read the full story here

Image source, GETTY IMAGES

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has commissioned a review of the 2m (6ft) social distancing rule, but could a reduced distance work to stem the spread of coronavirus, asks BBC Science editor David Shukman.

Put simply, the nearer you are to someone who is infected, the greater the risk of catching the virus.

The government's scientific advisers say that being 1m apart carries up to 10 times the risk of a 2m separation.

Meanwhile the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends keeping a distance of at least 1m, external.

It's not all about distances, however. The amount of time spent in proximity to an infected person, the quality of ventilation, and safety precautions such as face coverings can all have an impact on the chances of infection.

You can read more here.

Anna Jones
BBC News

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Despite a long border with China and a population of 97 million people, Vietnam has recorded just over 330 cases of Covid-19 on its soil and not a single death.

So how has it managed to keep the numbers so low?

Experts say that Vietnam saw a small window to act early on, and used it fully.

It enacted measures other countries would take months to introduce, bringing in travel restrictions, closely monitoring and eventually closing the border with China and increasing health checks at borders and other vulnerable places.

By mid-March, Vietnam was sending everyone who entered the country - and anyone who'd had contact with a confirmed case - to quarantine centres for 14 days.

But though cost-effective, its intrusive and labour-intensive approach has its drawbacks, and experts say it may be too late for most other countries to learn from its success.

You can read more here.

Image source, Getty Images

As we reported earlier, France is set to reopen its borders to some travellers as it begins to relax its lockdown measures.

Let's take a deeper look at what this will mean.

In an address to the nation, President Emmanuel Macron said France would allow travellers from almost all European Union countries to enter from Monday.

Visitors from other continents would be allowed to enter from 1 July, he said.

But travellers from Spain, along with those from the UK, will have to quarantine because of their own restrictions on French arrivals.

UK visitors will have to self-isolate for 14 days, the government says.

You can read more about France easing its lockdown measures here.

Almost one in three people tested for Covid-19 in the Indian capital, Delhi, this week were found to be positive, reported the Hindustan Times newspaper, external. It's analysis was based on government data.

The newspaper added that the average positivity rate - the percentage of people who test positive - was 30.5%. In comparison, this rate for all of India is about 7%, according to the country's top medical body.

Cases have been galloping in Delhi in recent weeks, which currently has more than 40,000 infections.

“This just means that currently the numbers are on a rising trend and there is transmission happening in the community," Dr Shobha Broor told the newspaper. She added that the high positivity rate could also be explained by labs potentially only testing those with symptoms. "If you only test the people who are likely to have the infection, the positivity rate will be high."

The capital city has been struggling to accommodate an increasing caseload as numerous reports of patients being turned away at hospitals emerge. With more than 300,000 infections, India now has the fourth-highest number of cases in the world.

Image source, Getty Images

EasyJet planes will be taking to the skies again after weeks of being grounded, as the British carrier resumes a small number of mostly domestic flights on Monday.

The resumption comes after weeks of lockdown, though the airline will only be starting with minimal service.

It will be flying mostly routes within Britain to cities like Edinburgh and Belfast, and to a handful of European cities in France, Switzerland, Italy and Portugal, according to a Reuters report.

EasyJet and two other airlines are taking legal action against the British government in a bid to overturn a 14-day quarantine policy.

Under current rules, all arrivals into the UK have to go into quarantine for two weeks - but airlines say this will have a "devastating" effect on tourism.

Image source, Getty Images

Chris Ewokor
BBC News, Abuja

Image source, AFP

One of the main doctors' unions in Nigeria says its members will go ahead with a strike on Monday over poor pay and a lack of personal protective equipment for health workers.

The Association of Resident Doctors says they will stop providing all services including emergency care and coronavirus treatment.

The union's president, Aliyu Sokomba, said the government had failed to respond to the doctors' demands, including a call for extra payment to reflect the increased risk they faced during the pandemic.

Nigeria has recorded more than 15,000 cases of Covid-19 and more than 400 deaths.

The association represents around a third of Nigeria's doctors.

Image source, Getty Images

The Disneyland theme park in Hong Kong is set to reopen this Thursday - but with a reduced number of visitors.

The park, which closed in January due to the outbreak, will introduce social distancing measures and suspend all activities that require close interaction with others.

Visitors will also be required to wear face masks.

It is the second Disney park to reopen in China, after the Shanghai Disneyland welcomed visitors last month.

You can read more about the challenges of reopening that park here.

From Monday, all non-essential shops are allowed to reopen in England.

BBC business correspondent Szu Ping Chan has visited a shop in London to see how things have changed.

Anyone travelling on public transport in England must wear a face covering from Monday.

More than 3,000 extra staff including police officers are being deployed at stations to make sure people comply.

Passengers without a covering will be asked to wear one. If they refuse, they may not be allowed on board or they could be fined £100.

People with certain health conditions, disabled people and children under the age of 11 will be exempt from the rule.

In the coming days, hundreds of thousands of free coverings will be handed out at railway stations. The government says masks can be homemade, such as a scarf or bandana.

As well as on transport, all hospital visitors and outpatients also have to wear masks.

• Read more here

Image source, Getty Images

As the pandemic looms, heavy-handed policing in Mathare, one of Kenya's poorest settlements, leads to violence and a series of tragic deaths.

Reporting from Mathare’s coronavirus frontline, local journalist Elijah Kanyi asks: is the cure deadlier than the virus?

Image source, EPA

French President Emmanuel Macron has said the country has "won its first victory" over the virus, and a number of restrictions will now be lifted.

In a televised speech to the nation, he said France would reopen its borders to travellers from the European Union from Monday.

Restaurants and cafes will also be able to reopen fully, not only outdoors. Schools, except for high schools, will open from 22 June. Macron warned the virus could still return, however.

He also said the disease had exposed France’s "shortcomings" - and that the country had been overly dependent on global supply chains.

Image source, EPA

The Australian government today outlined a series of building and infrastructure projects to get the economy going again.

Australia's economy is forecast to recover quicker than those of many other nations due to its successful suppression of the virus.

The OECD has forecast it will have one of the smallest falls in GDP among developed economies for the rest of 2020, and official unemployment forecasts have been revised down to 8% from 10%.

However, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said it would still take two years for the economy to return to where it was pre-pandemic. “There is a mountain yet to climb,” he said.

The government aims to cut off some of its A$260bn (£140bn; $180bn) welfare supports next month – and says it will be “extremely cautious” about future spending.

Australia is still recording a handful of new cases each day, but will have almost all of its restrictions - excepting border closures - lifted come July.

It has eliminated the virus in many parts of the country, authorities said last week.

Image source, AFP

Non-essential shops in England are set to open this Monday, after nearly three months of lockdown.

Outdoor attractions like zoos will also be allowed to open, as will places of worship - albeit only for individual prayer.

All sites have to stick to social distancing rules though, which means people have to remain at least 2m (6ft) apart and will be asked to wear face masks when indoors. The same goes for public transport.

Shops in Northern Ireland opened on Friday while Scotland and Wales have not yet decided when to allow their businesses to follow suit.

Thomas Naadi
BBC News, Accra

Image source, AFP

President Nana Akufo-Addo has announced that the wearing of face masks is now compulsory in Ghana.

The country’s coronavirus case count has risen to nearly 12,000, with 54 deaths and about 4,000 recoveries.

Restrictions on religious gatherings have been eased and schools will reopen for final year students on Monday. Border crossings still remain closed.

The country has so far conducted about 250,000 tests in its population of 30 million.

• Coronavirus in Ghana: Online funerals, face masks and elections without rallies