Reuters World News Summary
Following is a summary of current world news briefs.
'We'll meet again': Queen Elizabeth invokes WW2 spirit to defeat coronavirus
Queen Elizabeth told the British people on Sunday that they would overcome the coronavirus outbreak if they stayed resolute in the face of lockdown and self-isolation, invoking the spirit of World War Two in an extremely rare broadcast to the nation. In what was only the fifth televised address of her 68-year reign, Elizabeth called upon Britons to show the resolve of their forbears and demonstrate they were as strong as generations of the past.
Boris Johnson hospitalised for tests after persistent coronavirus symptoms
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was admitted to hospital for tests on Sunday after suffering persistent coronavirus symptoms 10 days after testing positive for the virus, though Downing Street said he remained in charge of the government. Johnson, who was isolating in Downing Street after testing positive last month, still had a high temperature and so his doctors felt he should go to an undisclosed hospital for tests in what the government said was a "precautionary step".
Italy starts to look ahead to 'phase two' as COVID-19 death toll slows
Italy reported its lowest daily COVID-19 death toll for more than two weeks on Sunday as authorities began to look ahead to a second phase of the battle against the new coronavirus once the lockdown imposed almost a month ago is eventually eased. The toll from the world's deadliest outbreak reached 15,887, almost a quarter of the global death total, but the rise of 525 from a day earlier was the smallest daily increase since March 19, while the number of patients in badly stretched intensive care units fell for a second day running.
Japan PM Abe to declare state of emergency as early as Tuesday: Yomiuri
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will declare a state of emergency over the coronavirus as early as Tuesday and will likely announce his plans to do so on Monday, the Yomiuri newspaper reported. Under a law revised in March to cover the coronavirus, the prime minister can declare a state of emergency if the disease poses a "grave danger" to lives and if its rapid spread could have a huge impact on the economy. The virus has already increased Japan's recession risk.
Most Brazilians do not want Bolsonaro to resign despite criticism of his coronavirus response: poll
Most Brazilians do not favor President Jair Bolsonaro resigning despite mounting criticism of his handling of the coronavirus outbreak, according to a poll published by newspaper Folha de S.Paulo on Sunday. The survey conducted by Datafolha pollster from Wednesday to Friday showed that 59% of the 1,511 respondents would oppose Bolsonaro's resignation, while 37% would approve and 4% could not give an opinion. The margin of error was 3 percentage points, the newspaper said.
Spain and EU commissioners call for common European debt instruments: newspaper
Europe needs debt mutualisation and a common "Marshall Plan" to recover from the coronavirus pandemic, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez told newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, even as Germany dismissed calls for the debt-pooling idea. EU leaders have tasked policymakers with finding a new way to finance a recovery from the COVID-19 outbreak, after Germany and the Netherlands ruled out calls from France, Italy and Spain to create a common debt instrument.
Coronavirus divides lovers, friends at Swiss-German border fences
Constance, Germany, and Kreuzlingen, Switzerland, are divided cities these days, with a strip of grass and two fences separating them after the countries closed their borders to slow the spread of the coronavirus. In a park on Lake Constance's shoreline residents of both cities normally move freely across an invisible line marking where one nation ends and the other begins. But everything has changed: Most Germans cannot come to Switzerland, most Swiss are barred from Germany.
Spain's coronavirus death toll rises by 674 to 12,418
Spain's coronavirus death toll has risen by 674 to 12,418 in the last day, the Health Ministry said on Sunday. A day earlier the toll rose by 809.
France's death toll slows but coronavirus still hits hard
France's daily death toll from the novel coronavirus fell in the past 24 hours and admissions into intensive care also slowed, the health ministry said on Sunday, thanking citizens for largely respecting a lockdown to halt the spread of the virus. The health ministry data showed that 357 people died from COVID-19 in hospitals, compared with 441 in the previous 24 hours, taking the total toll in hospitals to 5,889.
Scotland's chief medical officer resigns after flouting own coronavirus guidance
Scotland's Chief Medical Officer Catherine Calderwood resigned on Sunday after she flouted her own advice to stay at home to fight the spread of the coronavirus by travelling to her second home on two successive weekends. She said the justifiable focus on her behaviour risked becoming a distraction from the hugely important job that government and the medical profession had to do in getting the country through this coronavirus pandemic. "It is with a heavy heart that I resign as Chief Medical Officer," she said.
