Reuters World News Summary
Following is a summary of current world news briefs.
Spain's coronavirus deaths near 14,000 as pace ticks up again
The pace of coronavirus deaths in Spain ticked up for the first time in five days on Tuesday, with 743 people succumbing overnight, but there was still hope the national lockdown might be eased soon. Tuesday's toll from the health ministry compared to 637 people who died during the previous 24 hours, taking the total to 13,798, the second highest in the world after Italy.
WHO warns against easing coronavirus measures too early
The World Health Organization has no blanket recommendation for countries and regions for easing measures to slow the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, but urged them not to lift them too early, a spokesman said on Tuesday. "One of the most important parts is not to let go of the measures too early in order not to have a fall back again," said WHO spokesman Christian Lindmeier in a virtual briefing.
Middle East still has chance to scale up coronavirus response: WHO
Most Middle Eastern countries are seeing worrying daily increases in cases of the new coronavirus but the region still has a chance to contain its spread, a senior World Health Organization (WHO) official said on Tuesday. The WHO has confirmed more than 77,000 cases and nearly 4,000 deaths in its Eastern Mediterranean region, which includes Pakistan, Afghanistan, Somalia and Djibouti, as well as Middle Eastern states, but does not include Turkey.
UK PM Johnson in intensive care, needed oxygen after COVID-19 symptoms worsened
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was in intensive care on Tuesday after receiving oxygen support for serious COVID-19 complications while his foreign minister took over the helm of government as the outbreak accelerated. The upheaval of Johnson's personal battle with the virus has shaken the government just as the United Kingdom enters what scientists say will be the most deadly phase of the pandemic, which has killed 5,373 people in Britain and 70,000 worldwide.
Coronavirus lockdown is nothing new for some Moscow residents
For some elderly Moscow residents, the coronavirus lockdown has a familiar feel - they lived through something like it during a dramatic Soviet-era smallpox outbreak six decades ago. That crisis, in 1960, was accompanied by emergency measures that were at times more draconian than this time round.
A city traumatized: Lockdown easing, Wuhan residents fret over future
Li Xiaoli has been hard at work in recent days at the car dealership she owns in Wuhan, making sure she has enough sanitizer and protective gear for the company's long-awaited reopening. The 49-year-old's home city will on Wednesday finally start to lift a lockdown that has trapped millions for more than two months after the Chinese industrial powerhouse became the epicentre of a global coronavirus pandemic.
Russian space agency says Trump paving way to seize other planets
The Russian space agency, Roscosmos, accused Donald Trump on Tuesday of creating a basis to take over other planets by signing an executive order outlining U.S. policy on commercial mining in space. The executive order, which Roscosmos said damaged the scope for international cooperation in space, was signed on Monday.
Japan declares state of emergency, nearly $1 trillion stimulus for coronavirus
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Tuesday declared a state of emergency to fight coronavirus infections in major population centres and rolled out a nearly $1 trillion stimulus package to soften the economic blow. The state of emergency, giving authorities more power to press people to stay at home and businesses to close, will last a month and be imposed in the capital, Tokyo, and six other prefectures, accounting for about 44% of Japan's population.
Ex-Vatican treasurer Cardinal Pell acquitted of sex offences, leaves prison
Australia's highest court acquitted former Vatican treasurer George Pell on Tuesday of sexually assaulting two teenaged choirboys in the 1990s, freeing the 78-year-old cardinal after 404 days in jail. The Vatican welcomed the decision and praised Pell for having "waited for the truth to be ascertained".
Coronavirus crisis spells trouble for many Egyptian breadwinners
Squatting with other day labourers under a bridge in Cairo, 48-year-old Yasser Nagi says he has waited in vain for two weeks for work on a construction site so he can feed his family. Egypt, like other countries, has been hit hard by the spread of the coronavirus, which has wiped out its vital tourism industry and prompted authorities to close airports, restaurants, firms and shops and to impose a night curfew.
