An Austrian woman goes on trial today for ignoring quarantine rules. The unprecedented case involves a woman from Klagenfurt accused of going to the post office while suffering from Covid-19 and not wearing a mask. She could face a three-year jail term.

Ireland's government has relaxed quarantine rules on travel to and from 15 European countries but says the safest thing is still not to travel. The "green list" includes Malta, Finland, Norway, Greece, Cyprus, Italy, Hungary, Slovakia and the Baltic republics. The UK, France and Spain remain on the quarantine list.

France's public health authority says it's still too early to give a precise coronavirus death toll - but says 29,186 deaths in hospitals and care homes were directly linked to the virus from March to the end of May. At one point, at the end of March, the mortality rate was 60% higher than normal.

Image source, AFP

The mayor of A Coruña in the Galicia region of north-west Spain has criticised Second Division club Fuenlabrada for travelling to her city for a crunch match even though there was a Covid-19 outbreak in the team. Monday's match was called off but the club says everyone who took the plane had taken a negative test. The match will be replayed on 30 July, but local team Deportivo have been relegated.

Image source, AFP

Thailand is extending its state of emergency until the end of August, a senior official confirmed.

A state of emergency was first declared in April, in a bid to contain the coronavirus outbreak in the country. Under the decree, the prime minister is allowed to ban anyone from leaving home, mass gatherings and the use of public transport.

The prime minister can also stop media from reporting any content that causes panic or unrest, the Bangkok Post said ahead of the extension., external

Thailand hasn't reported a case of local transmission in two months, according to Reuters news agency.

Compared with other countries in the region, Thailand has had a relatively small number of cases.

More than 3,000 people have tested positive and 58 people have died.

“It is still necessary to have the decree because we are opening up the country for more business meetings and tourism to stimulate the economy,” Somsak Roongsita, secretary-general of the National Security Council said.

A committee on lockdown easing has vowed that the state of emergency would not be used to control political gatherings.

Image source, Getty Images

Germany and Ireland have both trumpeted their success in rolling out contact-tracing apps.

But is there any evidence that they are doing what they are designed to do - that is, warning people they could be infected with the virus?

Not yet - and the privacy-conscious way in which they are designed could mean we will never know how effective they have been.

Germany's Corona-Warn-App was rolled out nationwide in June. A few days ago, the Robert Koch Institute provided an update on its progress, celebrating the fact that it had now been installed by around 16 million people.

Bear in mind, however, that there are 83 million Germans, and it is thought more than half of the population need to have an app before it is truly effective.

"The app works" added the institute's president Prof Lothar Wieler. He went on to say that about 500 app users had tested positive for the virus and "had the opportunity to warn others via the app".

But he then said: "We cannot say exactly how many people were warned, because of the decentralised approach of the app."

In other words, we do not know whether the software is performing its key function.

Read the full piece from our tech reporters here.

Image source, Getty Images

We reported earlier that the state of Victoria had seen a record 484 infections in the past day, overwhelmingly in Melbourne.

That also makes it Australia’s worst day since the pandemic began, Deputy Chief Medical Officer Michael Kidd has just confirmed.

With 16 infections in New South Wales and one each in Queensland and South Australia, today's 502 cases eclipsed a record from 28 March (469).

Australia has fared better than many nations but Melbourne's outbreak will see deaths increase, officials warn. Australia has had 128 in total.

"We reported only two cases [of the virus] on June 9 - less than six weeks ago - and this shows how quickly outbreaks can occur and spread," Mr Kidd said.

Image source, Handout

Fitness coach Joe Wicks has become a household name in the UK during the lockdown because of the free workouts he has live streamed every weekday. After nearly four months, they're finally ending today - and his fans are sorry to see him go.

"Before lockdown, I basically did no exercise, nothing whatsoever," says Vanessa Taylor, from Rochdale, Greater Manchester. "Now, I do it every day apart from Sunday."

"He's changed so many lives for the better," she says. "It's absolutely brilliant. From day one, I have just kept going."

The workouts have been done in care homes, schools and by families across the country. The BBC has spoken to some of his devoted fans - and explored why the workouts have been so popular.

Image source, EPA

Top US Democrat Nancy Pelosi has dubbed coronavirus the “Trump virus” as she criticised the president’s handling of the pandemic.

Her comments came after President Trump asked Americans to wear face masks and said the situation in the US may “may get worse before it gets better.”

It marked a change in tone from the president who in a briefing largely stuck to what public health officials have advised about the pandemic.

Speaking on CNN, Pelosi, the House Speaker, said: “Well, I think with the president’s comments today, he recognised the mistakes he has made by now embracing mask-wearing and the recognition this is not a hoax. It is a pandemic that has gotten worse before it will get better because of his inaction.”

“In fact, clearly it is the Trump virus,” she said.

Her phrasing echoed Trump's, who has been criticised for calling Covid-19 the "China virus".

"There are a huge number of people who are going to have suffered trauma through this period who will need support for their mental health," says Alun Thomas, the head of Welsh mental illness charity Hafal.

"We don't know how large that group will be yet."

There have been widespread concerns from charities and experts about the toll that the pandemic and resulting lockdown could take on people's mental health.

Now, consultant psychologist Dr Bob Colgate, from Bridgend's Princess of Wales Hospital, has told the BBC that people who did not access mental health support during lockdown could be arriving for treatment feeling worse than if they had been treated months ago.

Read more here.

An annual Hindu pilgrimage to a Himalayan cave shrine in Indian-administered Kashmir has been cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Officials cited rising cases as the reason, saying the health concerns were "serious".

The Amarnath Yatra attracts hundreds of thousands of Hindu pilgrims annually over two months.

All places of worship in Jammu and Kashmir are closed to the public until 31 July.

On Tuesday, the region recorded 608 new cases, taking the total caseload past 15,000, media reports said.

The shrine, located high up in the mountains, has a naturally formed stalagmite that is worshipped as an incarnation of Hindu god Shiva.

• You can read more on this here

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

The world of work across the world is changing - and in the UK, some sectors appear to be in a much stronger position than others.

According to the latest jobs market report from website CV-Library, the number of job vacancies in the UK fell by 62.7% in the second quarter of 2020.

And for those jobs that are being advertised, competition is stiff, with the average application-to-job ratio rising by 84%.

So, with more people battling it out for jobs, which industries are actually hiring staff? And which face a more uncertain future?

Lorry drivers and cleaners are on our list of those in demand, while jobs in pubs, restaurants and events are among those under threat.

Read the full list here.

Image source, Getty Images

Aritana Yawalapiti, one of Brazil’s leading indigenous chiefs, has a severe case of Covid-19, his son said on Tuesday.

The 70-year-old tested positive after having trouble breathing, his son Taipi told AFP news agency.

Chief Aritana had been raising funds to help indigenous communities cope with the virus when he became ill. Indigenous communities in the country have been hit hard by the virus.

According to the Brazilian Indigenous People’s Association, more than 17,000 people from the indigenous community have been infected and 544 have died.

The chief has been transferred from a smaller hospital to one with an intensive care bed available, his son said.

Geeta Pandey
BBC News, Delhi

Quibbles over who does the housework during the recent coronavirus lockdown have brought the gender politics of India's homes into the open.

Housework in India usually involves a lot of heavy lifting. Unlike in the West, few Indian homes are equipped with dishwashers, vacuum cleaners or washing machines.

So, dishes have to be individually cleaned, clothes have to be washed in buckets and hung out to dry, and homes have to be swept with brooms and mopped with rags. Then there are children to be looked after and the elderly and infirm to be cared for.

In millions of middle class homes, the housework is delegated to the hired domestic help - part-time cooks, cleaners and nannies. But what happens when the help can't come to work because there is a nationwide lockdown?

The answer is friction and fighting - and in one unique case, a petition urging Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene.

• Click here to read the full story

Good morning to our UK audience just waking up. We'll be bringing you the latest updates on the virus from around the world all day.

Here's a quick round-up of what's been happening in the UK:

• In case you missed it, our biggest story from yesterday was the warning from leading scientists that the UK will be living with the coronavirus for many years to come and even a vaccine is unlikely to eliminate it for good. "Things will not be done by Christmas," said one member of the government's advisory group of scientists
• Businesses say they are still only operating at around half of their capacity before the virus and have called for tax cuts to help firms recover
• In Scotland, beauticians, nail salons and tattoo parlours can reopen from today. All four nations of the UK are in charge of their own lockdown restrictions and beauty salons have already reopened in England and Northern Ireland
• Meanwhile, in Wales, universities and colleges are to get a £50m support package to help them deal with the impact of the virus.
• If you've applied for a passport recently, you might have to wait a bit longer than normal. There's a backlog of more than 400,000 applications in the UK due to the pandemic, figures show. Social distancing means forms are taking longer to process
• Outdoor gardens - like Kew and the National Trust - say they are frustrated at people booking and then not showing up. They say it's a real shame and are asking visitors to cancel, not just not show up.

Image source, Getty Images

Tourism numbers across Africa are sharply down.

A few countries on the continent are starting to allow international flights again. Yet this raises a dilemma: open up too fast and foreign tourists could bring a new outbreak of Covid-19; remain closed for too long and more livelihoods will be lost and there might be little left to salvage.

"To say the impact of the crisis has been devastating is an understatement, Naledi Kabo, CEO of Africa Tourism Association, told the BBC.

"I don't think tourism will ever look like it did before."

• Click here to read the personal stories of those affected

Image source, Reuters

Australian airline Qantas is bidding farwell to its final Boeing 747 plane, after its retirement was brought forward by the coronavirus pandemic.

The company's chief executive, Alan Joyce, was joined by pilots and other staff in signing the carrier's last 747 at Sydney airport before its final flight to the Mojave Desert in the US.

Image source, Reuters

The iconic jumbo jet had grown less desirable than newer models even before the pandemic, but Qantas pushed its retirement forward by several months because of the lack of international travel demand.

Other airlines such as British Airways are doing the same.

Qantas has grounded most international flights until at least July 2021 because of travel restrictions.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Getty Images

International passengers arriving at Delhi will have to pay for their quarantine of seven days. This will be followed by a week of home quarantine, according to the latest guidelines.

Passengers will also have to undergo two rounds of mandatory screening before they can go into quarantine.

India has been badly hit by the virus - with more than a million cases, the country has the third highest caseload in the world.

Its national capital, Delhi, dominated headlines in June when cases were spiking at an alarming rate - but it seems like there has been a drop in infections in recent weeks. The capital has confirmed over 120,000 infections and 3,663 deaths so far, according to health ministry data.

President Donald Trump has warned that the US pandemic will probably "get worse before it gets better", as he revived his coronavirus briefings.

Trump also asked all Americans to wear face coverings, saying "they'll have an effect" and show "patriotism".

He himself was not wearing a mask at the briefing and has previously downplayed the use of masks.

The president's aides have reportedly asked him to adopt a new tone as virus caseloads spike across the US. There have now been almost 4 million confirmed cases in the country and just under 142,000 deaths have been linked to Covid-19.

Image source, Getty Images

The Tokyo Olympics, already pushed to next year, will hinge upon the development of a coronavirus vaccine or treatment, organising committee president Yoshiro Mori said Wednesday.

The Tokyo 2020 Games should have kicked off this Friday, but they were postponed in March as the pandemic spread across the globe.

Asked whether Tokyo could hold the Olympics next year if the situation remained unchanged, he said that "if things continue as they are now, we couldn't".

Yet he also said he was hopeful there would be enough progress until then. "I can't imagine a situation like this will continue for another year."

Image source, EPA

Another record spike - 484 cases - has been confirmed in Victoria, Australia, nearly two weeks into a lockdown in the state capital of Melbourne.

Victoria's Premier Daniel Andrews he was "very unhappy and very sad" to report that people aren't following the rules. Of the 3,810 cases detected in the past two weeks, officials have found that:

• Nearly 90% of cases did not isolate between first feeling symptoms and getting tested
• 53% of people did not self-isolate while waiting for their results

"People have felt sick, they've got symptoms and they've kept going shopping. They've kept going to work," Andrews said. "They have been at the height of their infectivity. And they have just continued on as usual."

However, he said it wasn't about blaming people, noting that many would have felt the pressure to work to "feed their kids, and pay their bills". He stressed that the state was offering 1,500 Australian dollars (£840; $1,070) sick leave payments to those who needed it.

Image source, AFP

The Pan American Health Organization has warned the pandemic in the Americas shows "no signs of slowing down".

Director Carissa Etienne said high levels of infectious disease and chronic conditions meant that three out of 10 people - over 300 million - were at increased risk of developing complications.

She said the virus was surging in Bolivia, Ecuador, Colombia and Peru, with some Central American countries seeing the highest weekly increases since the arrival of the virus.

Mexico's health ministry, meanwhile, confirmed that the number of deaths there has risen above 40,000; only the United States, Brazil and the UK have more.

Etienne also pointed to some bright spots: Chile, Argentina and Uruguay made "important progress" in fighting influenza, highlighting the value of Covid-19 prevention measures like handwashing and social distancing.

Welcome back to our global coverage of the coronavirus pandemic. Here are the headlines to bring you up to speed this Wednesday morning.

• The pandemic is showing no sign of slowing down in the Americas, the head of the Pan American Health Organization warns.
• Carissa Etienne says the virus is surging in Bolivia, Ecuador, Colombia and Peru. More than 300m people risk developing complications from Covid-19 because of underlying conditions, she says
• US President Donald Trump has warned the United States pandemic may "get worse before it gets better". He also asked all Americans to wear face coverings, saying "they'll have an effect" and show "patriotism"
• In the UK, health experts have warned politicians the Sars-Cov-2 virus will be with us for "decades"
• In Australia, the state of Victoria has announced another record number of daily cases, with 484 in the past 24 hours