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UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who named his son for the doctors that he credits with helping to save his life, speaks of his harrowing battle, while in Spain citizens enjoy finally being able to go outside.
This story is being updated regularly throughout Monday.
Boris Johnson gives details of COVID-19 battle
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has offered more insight into his hospitalisation for coronavirus, telling a British newspaper that he knew doctors were preparing for the worst.
Mr Johnson, who spent three nights in intensive care during his week of treatment in a London hospital after falling ill with COVID-19, told The Sun he was aware that doctors were discussing his fate.
"It was a tough old moment, I won't deny it," Mr Johnson said.
At one point, doctors discussed invasive ventilation.
"The bad moment came when it was 50-50 whether they were going to have to put a tube down my windpipe," he said.
"They were starting to think about how to handle it presentationally.
The remarks were Mr Johnson's most candid yet on his battle with COVID-19, though he acknowledged when he left the hospital that his fight to survive "could have gone either way," as he paid tribute to the two nurses who never left his bedside for 48 hours.
Jenny McGee from New Zealand and Luis Pitarma from Portugal, he said, embodied the caring and sacrifice of National Health Service staff on the front lines of the pandemic, which has already killed more than 28,200 people in Britain.
After Mr Johnson was discharged, St Thomas' said it was glad to have cared for the Prime Minister, but the hospital has given no details about the gravity of his illness beyond stating that he was treated in intensive care.
Mr Johnson's close call is reflected in the name that he and fiancée Carrie Symonds gave to their newborn son, giving him the middle name Nicholas after two doctors who helped treat the Prime Minister.
Spaniards and Italians look to enjoy the sunshine again
Spaniards revelled in a second day of freedom on Sunday, flocking outdoors in time-slots for age groups on the first weekend adults were allowed out since one of the world's strictest coronavirus lockdowns was imposed in mid-March.
Though Spain's COVID-19 outbreak has shrouded the nation in mourning for more than 25,000 dead, there was much-needed relief on a sunny spring day as people at last headed back to the streets, hills and sea.
To prevent overcrowding, Barcelona's city council barred entry to its urban beaches, so thousands converged instead on the beachfront boardwalk.
In the capital Madrid, where parks and other large public spaces remain closed, runners and walkers shared narrow pavements and walkways.
The relaxation of exercise restrictions is one of the first steps in a four-phase plan to reopen Spain by the end of June.
Italians, meanwhile, are counting down the hours until Monday, when parks and public gardens will re-open across the country for strolling, jogging or bike riding.
Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has warned that if the rate of contagion starts rising again, such freedoms will be curtailed.
India, Russia struggling as numbers soar
From the United States to Europe and Asia, the easing of some coronavirus lockdowns brought millions out of their homes to enjoy the outdoors, yet the global pandemic is still slicing through the defences of other nations.
India on Sunday reported more than 2,600 infections, its biggest single-day jump, and new coronavirus cases in Russia exceeded 10,000 for the first time.
Days after the Russian PM tested positive, the nation announced 10,633 new infections on Sunday, nearly double the new cases reported a week ago.
While in India the number of confirmed cases neared 40,000 as the country of 1.3 billion marked the 40th day of a nationwide lockdown that has upended lives, and left millions jobless and hungry.
Health experts warn that a second wave of infections could hit unless testing is expanded dramatically after lockdowns are eased.
Global tourism likely won't recover until 2023
Tourism Economics, a data and consulting firm, predicts global travel demand won't resume its normal pace until 2023.
Airlines have grounded nearly two-thirds of their planes as passengers vanish. Millions of people who depend on tourism have been laid off or furloughed.
The United Nations World Tourism Organisation predicts global tourist arrivals — or visits from tourists who come to their destinations and stay at least one night — will fall 30 per cent this year from the record 1.5 billion in 2019.
In the US alone, an estimated 8 million tourism-related workers are now out of work, accounting for about one-third of total unemployment, according to president and CEO of the US Travel Association, Roger Dow.
In some places, governments are stepping in to help the sector. The French Government is paying around 80 per cent of furloughed hotel workers' salaries.
Cruise ships around the world are docked, with some not expected to sail again until November.
Many of Australia's COVID-19 cases have been linked to passengers who disembarked from the Ruby Princess cruise ship in Sydney in March.
Some experts say the cruise industry may never recover from the coronavirus pandemic.
McDonald's trials virus-proof restaurant
Big Macs delivered on meal trolleys, hand sanitisers at the entrance and designated waiting spots to separate customers could become a feature of McDonald's restaurants in the Netherlands when they are allowed to reopen.
In a trial at a restaurant in the city of Arnhem, McDonald's has been looking for ways to maintain social distancing when the coronavirus lockdown is relaxed.
Restaurants, bars and other public places in the Netherlands have been closed since March 15 in the country which now has 40,769 cases of coronavirus and just over 5,000 deaths.
However new infections have been dropping, prompting calls to loosen the lockdown after its current deadline of May 19.
If stores do reopen, they will have to keep customers and staff at least 1.5 metres apart to avoid a new wave of infections.
McDonald's says it could introduce table service, with burgers and fries wheeled to customers on trolleys from which they can pick up their orders. Other new features would include hand-washing stations at the entrance and a host behind a plastic screen showing customers their place in line.
Many restaurant owners in the Netherlands fear social distancing will simply put them out of business.
But McDonald's expects its new set-up will work at 180 larger restaurants out of its 252 franchises in the country.
