Irish Police check vehicles at the border crossing at Carrkcarnon, County Louth, Ireland, on April 9, 2020 to curb non-essential travel during the coronavirus crisis. (PAUL FAITH / AFP)

CAIRO / PARIS / NEW YORK / QUITO / LISBON / HELSINKI / LONDON / MILAN / MEXICO CITY / DAR ES SALAAM / WASHINGTON / ABUJA / TRIPOLI / CAPE TOWN / ATHENS / NAIROBI / MADRID / BERLIN / BUDAPEST / MOSCOW / BRUSSELS - Politicization of the COVID-19 pandemic is not allowed, said Irish Health Minister Simon Harris on Monday.

Harris made this remark in a statement issued before attending the annual session of the World Health Assembly (WHA) held on Monday.

"Today's meeting will be an important opportunity for the WHO and its Member States to collectively address the single most pressing global health issue in a moment of crisis," he said, adding that the meeting is also an opportunity for Ireland to show its support for the World Health Organization (WHO).

"In this time of great crisis, we need unity, not division. We cannot allow the politicization of this pandemic. Ireland stands shoulder to shoulder with the WHO," he said.

The Irish health minister said he would underline the importance of ensuring equitable access to vaccines, diagnostics, therapeutics and equipment in the COVID-19 context during his address to the WHA on Monday.

Germany

Germany hopes talks with European Union (EU) partners on Monday will make progress toward lifting a global travel warning and enabling citizens to take vacations this summer, according to Foreign Minister Heiko Maas.

Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said a video call on Monday with 10 counterparts from nations including Italy, Spain, Greece, Portugal and Austria will focus on establishing criteria for holidays that would allow Germany to issue guidelines on international travel instead of a warning

Germany has a worldwide travel warning in place through June 14 due to the coronavirus on unnecessary leisure trips abroad. Although they are being scaled back, controls will remain in place on Germany’s borders with France, Austria and Switzerland until June 15, as well as for arrivals by air from Spain and Italy.

Maas said a video call on Monday with 10 counterparts from nations including Italy, Spain, Greece, Portugal and Austria will focus on establishing criteria for holidays that would allow Germany to issue guidelines on international travel instead of a warning.

“That will give people a basis on which to make a decision about where they can go and where it would be better not to go,” Maas said in an interview with ZDF television. He cautioned that a “mechanism” is also needed to enable a quick reaction in the event of a resurgence in infections.

Germany recorded 617 new cases in the 24 hours through Monday morning, bringing the tally to 176,369, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. It was a slight increase from the 519 new cases reported on Sunday. Fatalities rose by 15 to 7,962.

Workers clean a store's facade in Mexico City on May 17, 2020. (CLAUDIO CRUZ / AFP)

Mexico

Mexico on Sunday reported 49,219 cases of the coronavirus, 2,075 more than the previous day, as the country prepares to resume economic activities deemed essential.

The death toll increased by 132 to a total of 5,177.

Mexico announced last week a plan to gradually resume economic activity that has been halted by the coronavirus, starting on June 1. On Friday, Mexico’s government said the automotive industry could exit the coronavirus lockdown before June 1 if companies had in place approved safety measures.

Deputy Health Minister Hugo López-Gatell said at a news conference on Sunday that cases had started to stabilize over the past week in Mexico City and its metropolitan area, which has the highest level of infection in the country.

Authorities have said that the true number of cases could be up to nine times greater than the reported total because many of those infected likely did not go to the doctor, did not develop symptoms or were not properly diagnosed.

Global tally

Confirmed COVID-19 cases worldwide topped 4.7 million on Sunday, reaching 4,708,415 as of 6:32 pm (2232 GMT), according to data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University.

A total of 314,950 people worldwide have died of the disease, according to the data.

The United States is the hardest-hit country, with 1,486,375 confirmed cases and a death toll of 89,549. Countries with over 200,000 cases also include Russia, Britain, Brazil, Spain and Italy, according to the data.

ALSO READ: Brazil passes Italy and Spain in confirmed virus cases

Nigeria

Nigeria impounded a plane operated by a British company for allegedly contravening a flight ban imposed to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, the aviation minister said on Sunday.

Passenger flights into the country, with the exception of ones to evacuate people or repatriate Nigerian citizens, have been banned for weeks. The ban will remain in place until at least June 4.

Flights for essential services, such as the delivery of food supplies and items for humanitarian use, are permitted.

Aviation Minister Hadi Sirika said on Twitter on Sunday a UK company "was given approval for humanitarian operations but regrettably we caught them conducting commercial flights".

The message added: "The craft is impounded, crew being interrogated. There shall be maximum penalty."

James Oduadu, an aviation ministry spokesman, told Reuters later in a telephone interview that the plane was operated by a company called FlairJet.

FlairJet, a British private charter company that is an affiliate of Flexjet, in a statement said the matter was an "evolving situation".

Italy

Italian shops, hairdressers and restaurants finally threw open their doors on Monday as the country sped up efforts to bounce back from the coronavirus crisis after a 10-week lockdown.

Masses were allowed again in churches after bishops put pressure on the government to sanction religious services.

Monday marked a major step forward on the road to recovery, with unlimited travel allowed in individual regions, friends once again meeting up and restaurants able to serve as long as tables were at least 2 meters apart.

Although there was noticeably more traffic on the roads of major cities on Monday morning, some people appeared hesitant to resume their old habits.

The daily death toll from the COVID-19 epidemic in Italy fell to 145 on Sunday, the lowest since March 9, against 153 the day before, the Civil Protection Agency said, while the daily tally of new cases fell to a March 4-low of 675 from 875 on Saturday.

The total death toll now stands at 31,908 the agency said, while the number of confirmed cases now stands at 225,435.

The government has said it will open up Italy's borders with Europe and allow free travel between the regions from June 3, but no-one expects a sudden influx of outsiders.

READ MORE: Beaches, parks busy as Europe heat wave & US spring test virus rules

People shop at the Place de la Bastille market in Paris, France, on May 17, 2020. (AURELIEN MORISSARD / XINHUA)

France

France reported 483 additional coronavirus deaths on Sunday, bringing the total to 28,108, as the country eases out of a two-month lockdown.

The 483 fatalities figure compared with 96 fatalities on Saturday, and was the highest since April 23. But a health ministry spokeswoman said this took into account "additional data" provided by local health agencies.

The 483 figure includes 429 deaths in retirement homes.

The number of confirmed cases rose to 142,481 on Sunday from 142,291 on Saturday.

Spain

Tourism-dependent Spain aims to reopen borders to visitors around the end of June as its coronavirus lockdown fully unwinds, a minister said on Monday.

Madrid last week surprised its EU partners by imposing a two-week quarantine on all overseas travelers and effectively keeping borders closed, saying that was needed to avoid importing a second wave of COVID-19.

But the move was meant to be temporary and Transport Minister Jose Luis Abalos said it would be phased out in parallel with travel being allowed within Spain, whose regions are easing restrictions in different phases.

"As soon as we Spaniards can travel to other provinces, foreigners will be able to come to Spain," he told TVE broadcaster. "From late June, we'll start the tourism activity, I hope," he said. "We must make Spain an attractive country from the health point of view."

Separately, the government said it would from now on announce the day's tally of coronavirus cases and fatalities around 5 pm (1500 GMT) instead of doing so at 11 am.

One of the worst-hit nations with 27,650 deaths and 231,350 infections, Spain is slowly easing a strict lockdown in place since mid-March which had meant for weeks people could not even go out for exercise.

UK

The United Kingdom has added the loss of smell and taste to its official list of COVID-19 symptoms including fever and new continuous cough - a step that it hopes could help pick up about 2 percent more cases of the coronavirus.

The change, announced by Professor Jonathan Van-Tam, England's deputy chief medical officer, came after scientists advising the government decided it could help pick up more cases if included in the basic case definition.

Meanwhile, the head of London Heathrow airport said the UK should work with the EU and the US on an international safety standard to reopen the air-travel industry.

Quarantines can’t be applied indefinitely or across the board, Chief Executive Officer John Holland-Kaye said in an interview with Sky News on Sunday. 

Heathrow Airport, which before the novel coronavirus grounded planes was the busiest in Europe, said that it had been working with the UK government’s Department for Transport on proposals to allow some unrestricted travel.

“The proposal would create ‘travel corridors’ or ‘travel bubbles’ allowing free movement between countries or cities that are very low-risk, but potentially blocking flights from high-risk markets to safeguard public health,” the airport said in a statement.

British government ministers have said they plan a 14-day quarantine for most people arriving in the country in the coming weeks to try to prevent a second peak of the pandemic.

The number of people who have died in the UK after testing positive for COVID-19 rose by 170 to 34,636, business minister Alok Sharma said on Sunday, the lowest increase in the official death toll since March 24.

Sharma said 243,303 people in Britain had so far tested positive for the virus, an increase of 3,142 since Saturday.

ALSO READ: UK 'still in talks with France' over quarantine exemption

Sharma also said that Oxford University and drug maker AstraZeneca had struck a global licensing deal for a vaccine that Oxford scientists were working on, one of the front runners in the global race to provide protection against the new coronavirus.

Meanwhile, sniffer dogs, which can detect certain cancers, will be trained in Britain to detect COVID-19 even before symptoms appear in humans, according to the Department of Health and Social Care.

Vehicles line in front of a car transport station to the island Sylt as a policeman warns a driver who has made an illegal turn, in Dagebuell, Germany, May 18, 2020. (FRANK MOLTER / DPA VIA AP)

EU

The head of the EU medicines agency Guido Rasi said on Monday an initial authorization for US pharmaceutical company Gilead's remdesivir as a COVID-19 treatment could be granted in coming days.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has already recommended the compassionate use of remdesivir, which allows a drug to be administered to patients even before it has been fully authorized.    

"It might be that a conditional market authorization can be issued in the coming days," Rasi said at a hearing in the EU Parliament in Brussels.

Apart from remdesivir, Rasi said other possible treatments against COVID-19 that may be available fast are those based on monoclonal antibodies, which can "neutralize" the new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) that causes the COVID-19 disease.

US

US authorities are not yet seeing spikes in coronavirus cases in places that are reopening but it was still too early to determine such trends, health secretary Alex Azar said on Sunday.

Nearly all 50 US states have begun to allow some businesses to reopen and residents to move more freely, but only 14 states have met the federal government’s guidelines for lifting measures aimed at fighting the pandemic, according to a Reuters analysis.

READ MORE: In patchwork restart, parts of NY and other US states reopen

The top Democrat in Congress, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, said it was impossible to know the trajectory of the virus, which has killed close to 90,000 Americans, without more testing.

Legislation passed by the House of Representatives on Friday would provide for the keys to a successful reopening: testing, tracing and treatment, she said. Republicans have called the bill dead on arrival in the Senate. Pelosi said there will be negotiations on the legislation and that Democrats have "no red lines".

In New York, Governor Andrew Cuomo encouraged all individuals eligible for a COVID-19 test to receive one, as the state's daily testing capacity increased from 20,000 to 40,000.

The state now has over 700 testing sites, and a new website has been launched for people to find a nearby location, according to the governor.

Russia

Russia is working on getting reciprocal medical aid from the United States, Moscow said on Monday after the country reported its lowest overnight rise in coronavirus cases since May 1.

Russia on Monday reported 8,926 new cases of the novel coronavirus in the last 24 hours, pushing its nationwide case tally to 290,678. It was the third consecutive day that the daily rise in cases was below 10,000, a threshold that it has been above for much of May.

Russia's coronavirus taskforce said 91 people had died overnight, bringing the death toll to 2,722.

President Vladimir Putin ordered the army to send military staff and medical equipment to help the country’s largest gold miner, Polyus PJSC, fight the COVID-19 outbreak at its Siberian unit.

Personnel and more than 2 tons of medical equipment, including respirators, masks, gloves and protective suits, were delivered by aircraft to the city of Krasnoyarsk, the defense ministry said on its website. The equipment is being transferred near the Olimpiada gold mine, the biggest in Russia.

As many as 200 military staff, including 77 doctors and nurses, are being sent to the outbreak area, the ministry said.

Polyus earlier this month confirmed the first coronavirus cases at Olimpiada, with infections breaching 300 since then. 

Putin also said on Monday the coronavirus situation in Russia’s southern region of Dagestan was particularly difficult and that the mainly Muslim region’s healthcare system was under serious strain.

The Caspian Sea region of Dagestan has reported 3,460 cases of the new coronavirus and 29 deaths, although Russian media reports have suggested the real figures are much higher.

Hungary

The government of Hungary's prime minister Viktor Orban expects that the emergency powers it adopted in response to the coronavirus pandemic will end by early June, his chief of staff told broadcaster Hir TV late on Sunday.

As of Monday, Hungary has recorded 3,535 confirmed cases and 462 deaths.

The premier's chief of staff Gergely Gulyas said the government would submit a bill to parliament on May 26 proposing an end to the emergency powers. Last week he said this would likely be later in June.

The Parliament, where Orban's ruling Fidesz party holds a two-thirds majority, is widely expected to approve the bill.

As Hungary's infection rates declined, it began to ease a lockdown in the capital Budapest from Monday, allowing people back into shops and restaurant terraces, following the rural easing with a two-week delay.

Finland

Some classes in southern Finland will shift to distance learning after dozens of teachers and pupils were exposed to the coronavirus, just two days after the reopening of schools, Finnish national broadcaster Yle reported on Sunday.

The city of Porvoo informed on Sunday that a student of Linnajoki School in Porvoo has been diagnosed with COVID-19. Seventeen pupils and four teachers were exposed to the virus in school, which has 550 pupils. All of those exposed have been quarantined at home.

Meanwhile, at the Soderkulla school in Sipoo, a significant portion of staff were put under quarantine after coming into contact with an infected individual, according to the city on Sunday.

As a result, remote learning will resume for fourth, fifth and sixth graders, while contact teaching for grades one to three will continue at the school.

In response to the news, Finnish Minister of Education Li Andersson commented on Twitter that in cases of infection, schools should take action immediately and locally under the Communicable Diseases Act and put in place special arrangements to ensure safety.

READ MORE: EU drugs agency: Coronavirus vaccine possible in early 2021

A worker sprays disinfectant on vehicle in the Zabbaleen district of Cairo, Egypt, on May 17, 2020. (AHMED GOMAA XINHUA)

Egypt

Egypt will bring forward the start of its curfew by four hours to 5 pm and halt public transport from May 24 for six days during the Eid holiday, as it seeks to curb the spread of the new coronavirus, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said on Sunday.

Shops, restaurants, parks and beaches will be closed for the extended holiday at the end of the holy Muslim month of Ramadan, and restrictions on citizens' movements will remain in place for at least two weeks afterwards, Madbouly said.

Egypt witnessed on Sunday a daily record of 510 new COVID-19 infections, bringing the total tally to 12,229. The death toll rose to 630 after 18 more deaths were recorded.

Madbouly suggested there could be a gradual reopening of some venues including sports clubs and restaurants from mid-June. A reopening of places of worship would also be considered.

After Eid, the curfew will last from 8pm-6am, as it did before Ramadan.

Libya

The UN-backed government of Libya on Sunday extended the curfew that has been in place to contain COVID-19 for 10 more days starting from Monday.

The curfew starts from 6 pm until 6 am of the following morning (1600 until 0400 GMT). The rest of the precautionary measures will also continue.

Moreover, a curfew of 24 hours will be imposed during the three-day Eid, which will start early next week.

The announcement came on the same day the Libyan National Center for Disease Control announced seven new COVID-19 recoveries, raising the total number of recoveries in the country to 35.

No new confirmed cases were reported Sunday. The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Libya stands at 65, with three deaths.

Health authorities began a comprehensive survey across the country on Sunday to detect COVID-19 infections.

Uganda

Uganda's Ministry of Health on Monday reported 21 new confirmed cases of COVID-19, bringing the tally in the country to 248.

Director General of Health Services Henry Mwebesa said that out of 1,071 samples collected from cross-border truck drivers on Sunday, 21 Ugandans tested positive for the virus.

"All 253 community samples tested negative for COVID-19," Mwebesa said in a statement.

Uganda now requires all truck drivers to undergo COVID-19 testing at its land borders.

Previously, Uganda allowed truck drivers to proceed with their journey after their samples were taken. When the results turned positive, the truck driver would be followed up.

Out of the 248 confirmed COVID-19 cases, at least 63 have recovered and no one has died from the respiratory disease, according to the ministry.

South Africa

South African Health Minister Zweli Mkhize on Sunday voiced concern over the rapid spread of COVID-19 in Western Cape province, the epicenter of the epidemic in the country.

"We remain concerned about the developments in the Western Cape," where a total of 9,294 cases were reported, comprising almost 60 percent of the national cumulative cases, Mkhize said.

The province reported 890 new cases in the past 24 hours, accounting for 76 percent of the total number of new cases in the country, he said.

"The infection curve in the Western Cape is moving faster, and we are seeing higher rates of community transmission," Western Cape Governor Allan Winde said.

Nationwide, 1,160 new cases were reported in the past 24 hours, the most daily new infections reported so far, bringing the national tally to 15,515. 

Three more deaths were also reported, Mkhize said, raising the death toll to 264, of which 156 were reported in Western Cape.

A billboard is installed on an apartment building encouraging people to wear face masks. In Cape Town, South Africa, May 16, 2020. (NARDUS ENGELBRECHT / AP)

Portugal

The Portuguese Council of Ministers has extended the "state of calamity" in the country until May 31, according to a resolution published on Sunday.

The decision formalizes various legal measures to contain the COVID-19 pandemic and establishes conditions for reopening the economy.

Portugal will enter the second phase of reopening on Monday, when restaurants and cafeterias will be allowed to reopen with limited capacity, shopping centers up to 400 square meters will be allowed to resume operations and classes for secondary schools will resume.

As of Sunday, Portugal has recorded 29,036 COVID-19 infections and 1,218 deaths, according to health authorities. 

Director-General of Health Graca Freitas said that it was better for citizens to be prepared to live with the novel coronavirus as it will not disappear on its own.

"If we have a vaccine, the better. If not, we will have to live with the virus until we have natural immunity," Freitas added.

Ecuador

Ecuador will require all visitors to show COVID-19 test results that clear them of having the novel coronavirus, Interior Minister Maria Paula Romo said on Sunday.

The new travel requirement, which takes effect May 21, "will be mandatory" and the test "must have been done a maximum of 72 hours before boarding" a flight to Ecuador, Romo said via Twitter.

"Meanwhile, those arriving (before the new requirement takes effect Thursday) will have to undergo a rapid test," she said.

Ecuador is one of Latin America's hardest hit countries, with 32,763 cases of infection and 2,688 deaths, according to the latest official report on Saturday.  

El Salvador

Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele on Saturday night declared a state of emergency to extend coronavirus measures without approval by congress, touching off a torrent of criticism that the move had been unconstitutional.

Salvadoran lawmakers and prosecutors on Sunday vowed to challenge the decree, which they said had overstepped Bukele's powers. The Salvadoran attorney general said in a statement that it would file a suit alleging that the move was unconstitutional with the country's top court.

Bukele's administration contends that the risk of the coronavirus spreading further in El Salvador justifies the measures. The country has 1,338 confirmed cases of the virus and 27 deaths.

Honduras

Honduras on Sunday extended its blanket curfew for a week, a key measure in its efforts to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

The curfew, first imposed in mid-March, has been extended eight times as the government attempts to avoid overwhelming the health system, which struggles to meet the needs of the country's 9.2 million people even in normal times.

The curfew will now be in effect until May 24, a spokesman for the security ministry, Jair Meza, told a national radio and television network.

Honduras has sio far registered 2,646 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 142 deaths so far.

Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro, wearing a mask to protect against the new coronavirus, carries a child dressed in military policeman's uniform during a protest to back his open-the-economy drive amid the pandemic. In Brasilia, Brazil, May 17, 2020. (ANDRE BORGES / AP)

Brazil

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro held back from replacing his health minister Sunday, and instead joined supporters who marched in front of the presidential palace as the coronavirus crisis deepened.

The country is awaiting an announcement following Nelson Teich’s resignation Friday after 29 days on the job as health minister. He had taken over the post in April after Bolsonaro fired his predecessor amid public discord over social distancing.

Health Ministry figures released on Sunday evening showed that 7,938 new cases were recorded in the past 24 hours, bringing the total tally to 241,080, while the death toll increased by 485 to 16,118.

Sao Paulo's mayor warned on Sunday that the healthcare system the city was in danger of collapsing from the weight of mounting COVID-19 cases.

"We are nearing the most difficult time. Our intensive care beds are at 90 percent capacity," and the regular hospital beds are at 76 percent capacity, said Bruno Covas.

As of Sunday, Sao Paulo state, home to 20 million residents, has reported 62,345 confirmed cases and 4,782 deaths.

Tanzania

Tanzania's President John Magufuli said on Sunday he plans to reopen universities and allow the resumption of sports and international flights if the decline in new coronavirus infections continues.

Magufuli said activities could resume in the coming days. He noted that hospitals in the country showed a growing trend of recoveries.

Magufuli said he refused to impose a lockdown as the move would have seriously damaged the economy and led to job losses.

Unlike most other African countries, the government has gone for days without publicly releasing their COVID-19 updates. There are 509 confirmed cases and 21 deaths, according to WHO data.

One of his children had tested positive for the virus but recovered after self-isolating, Magufuli said.

Late on Saturday, Magufuli removed Deputy Health Minister Faustine Ndugulile, without providing an explanation. The move follows the suspension of the head of the country's national laboratory after Magufuli questioned the COVID-19 test kits.

Sudan

Sudan will keep its airports closed for both internal and international commercial passenger flights until May 31, the state news agency SUNA said on Sunday, extending a shutdown that began in March due to the coronavirus outbreak.

The airport will remain open only for flights for cargo, humanitarian aid, oil organizations' workers and evacuating foreigners.

Greece

Greece's health ministry announced on Sunday that the number of COVID-19 infections in the country has reached 2,834, with 163 deaths since the start of the outbreak.

Since Saturday, 15 new cases were diagnosed and one patient died, officials said at a regular press briefing.

On Monday, shopping malls, outlets, and businesses offering dietary and body care services will be allowed to reopen. Archeological sites, zoos, and botanical gardens will also be allowed to reopen on Monday under strict protection rules.

In addition, travel between different regions will also be allowed, as well as travel to and from the Greek islands of Crete and Evia.

Morocco

The Moroccan Ministry of Health confirmed on Sunday 129 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of cases in the country to 6,870.

The death toll remains at 192.

The total number of recoveries rose to 3,660 after 173 new cases of recovery were reported during the last 24 hours, according to Mohamed El Youbi, director of epidemiology at the ministry.

Djibouti

Djibouti's Ministry of Health on Sunday announced 70 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 1,401.

The ministry also said that 22 more patients have recovered over the past 24-hours period. So far, some 972 patients have recovered, the ministry said.

Djibouti has so far conducted a total of about 17,532 COVID-19 tests, according to the ministry, which has reported four COVID-19 deaths.

READ MORE: Lesotho becomes last country in Africa to record COVID-19 case

Sierra Leone

Sierra Leone recorded 43 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday, bringing the country's tally to 505, local health authorities said.

A total of 141 recoveries had been recorded, health authorities said, adding that the death toll stood at 32. 

The capital Freetown remains the hardest-hit city in the country, authorites said.

Somalia

Somalia's health ministry on Sunday confirmed 64 new cases of the coronavirus, bringing the total tally in the country to 1,421.

Health Minister Fawziya Abikar said one more death was reported, bringing the death toll to 56.

Abikar also said four more patients have recovered, raising the total number of recoveries to 152.

Kenya

Kenya on Sunday confirmed 57 new cases of the coronavirus, raising the country's tally to 887.

"We are happy to note that 12 patients have been discharged from hospital, bringing the total number of people who have so far recovered from COVID-19 to 313, while those who have succumbed to the disease remains 50," Cyrus Oguna, a spokesperson for the government, said in a statement.

Oguna said that some 12 Tanzania truck drivers who tested positive at Lunga Lunga and Taveta border points in the coastal region were repatriated back to their country.

The government on Saturday closed Tanzania and Somalia borders as part of the country's measures to help reduce the spread of COVID-19. The East African nation also extended a dust-to-dawn curfew, which will run for another 21 days.

Nurses who take care of coronavirus patients at the infectious disease unit take part in a Zumba dance-fitness class that was organized to help them relieve stress. In the car park outside Kenyatta University Teaching, Referral and Research Hospital in Nairobi, Kenya, May 17, 2020. (BRIAN INGANGA / AP)

Mali

Malian health authorities reported on Sunday 25 new confirmed cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 860.

Four deaths were recorded in the past 24 hours, the ministry said, adding that 1,900 close contacts are being monitored on a daily basis.

So far, the West African country has reported 860 confirmed cases, including 52 deaths and 494 recoveries since March 25.

Mozambique

Mozambique registered eight more cases of the coronavirus on Sunday, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 137.

One more case of recovery was reported, raising the number of recoveries to 44. 

Senegal

Senegal on Sunday reported 51 new confirmed COVID-19 cases, bringing the country's tally to 2,480.

Alyose Waly Diouf, spokesperson for the health ministry, said the country had carried out 816 tests in the past 24 hours, among which 51 came back positive.

A total of 47 follow-up contact cases were reported, along with four community-transmission ones, he said.

According to him, 24 more patients have recovered while nine patients remain in intensive care across the country.

So far, Senegal has reported 2,480 confirmed cases, including 973 recovery cases and 25 deaths.

Belarus

Belarus on Sunday 969 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on Sunday, taking its total to 29,650.

Out of all the confirmed cases, 9,932 people have recovered so far, while 165 people with chronic diseases have died, according to the country's health ministry.

Belgium

Belgium recorded 291 new cases of COVID-19 infection in the past 24 hours, confirming a decreasing trend in the spread of the virus over the past seven days, according to a statement issued by public health institute Sciensano on Sunday.

To date, the country has recorded 55,280 COVID-19 cases since the beginning of the epidemic.

A total of 371 patients are in intensive care while 170 people had recovered and had been discharged the hospitals, raising the total number of recoveries to 14,630.

In the last 24 hours, 47 more deaths were confirmed, bringing the toll in Belgium to 9,052.

Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe's COVID-19 cases have risen to 46 after two newly confirmed cases were reported in Harare on Sunday.

One of them is a male resident of Harare who returned from Britain, and the other is a cross-border truck driver who initially tested positive in Zambia and again tested positive on re-testing in Harare, the Ministry of Health and Child Care said in an update on Monday.

Zambian media reported on Friday that six Zimbabwean cross-border truck drivers tested positive for COVID-19 after crossing through the Chirundu border post into Zambia.

The number of people who have recovered in Zimbabwe now stands at 18 while the death toll remains at four.

Ethiopia

Ethiopia's COVID-19 cases reached 352 after 35 more people were confirmed, the Ethiopian Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) said in a statement on Monday.