Workers disinfect a classroom at Ivory Park Secondary School in the east of Johannesburg, South Africa, May 28, 2020, ahead of the reopening schools on June 1 for Grade 7 and 12 students. (THEMBA HADEBE / AP)

BUCHAREST / NEW YORK / LONDON / BOGOTA / SAO PAULO / PARIS / BERLIN / MADRID / WINDHOEK / ROME / TRIPOLI /NAIROBI / THE HAGUE / MOSCOW / SOFIA / HARARE / JOHANNESBURG / KIEV - As lockdown regulations are being eased in South Africa, a total of eight million workers are set to return to work on June 1, according to the government.

The country will allow most economic sectors, including mining and manufacturing, to fully resume operations from next month, the government said on Thursday.

South Africa will allow most economic sectors, including mining and manufacturing, to fully resume operations from next month, the government

"This is the most significant reopening of the economy since the lockdown began...It opens up all of our core productive sectors from manufacturing to mining," said Trade and Industry Minister Ebrahim Patel.

ALSO READ: Africa told not to let crisis hurt progress

"Employers must ensure that the 1.5-meter distance is maintained among employees. We will have to limit the number of people in the workplace, so that we minimize the chance of infection," Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma said.

Some high-risk businesses such as hotels, lodges, hair salons and sit-down facilities at restaurants will remain closed.

Limited domestic air travel has also been permitted, according to a government statement.

South Africa has reported 25,937 cases, with 552 deaths. The mining industry has recorded 320 cases so far.

Global tally

Global COVID-19 deaths surpassed 360,000 on Friday, reaching 360,412 as of 2:32 pm (0632 GMT on Thursday), according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University.

Meanwhile, more than 5.8 million COVID-19 cases have been reported around the world, according to the CSSE.

The United States reported the most COVID-19 cases and deaths, with a tally over 1.7 million and a death toll over 101,000. Other countries with over 20,000 fatalities included Britain, Italy, France, Spain, and Brazil, the CSSE data showed.

Algeria

The Algerian authorities on Thursday announced the extension of the nationwide lockdown to June 1, as the number of infections with COVID-19 in the country neared 9,000.

The lockdown was due to end on May 30.

According to a statement by the Prime MInister's Office, 16 provinces, including the capital Algiers, will remain under partial lockdown from 5 pm to 7 am, while the rest will observe partial lockdown from 7 pm to 7 am.

Earlier in the day, health authorities said that 140 new infections were registered in the last 24 hours, bringing the country's tally to 8,997.

Seven more deaths were reported, raising the death toll to 630.

Bosnia and Herzegovina

The Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) have decided to immediately and unconditionally open the borders with neighboring countries, namely Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro, the state-owned Federal news agency FENA reported on Thursday.

This means that the citizens of the above mentioned three countries will be allowed to enter BiH unconditionally. Until further notice, citizens of other countries will be allowed to enter only for business purposes and after presenting a negative coronavirus test not older than 24 hours and the invitation letter from the inviting company.

The Council of Ministers of BiH also decided that all three international airports, in Sarajevo, Banjaluka and Tuzla, will reopen on June 1. 

So far, BiH has reported a total of 2,462 cases of COVID-19 and 153 deaths.  

Brazil

Brazil reported a daily record of 26,417 new coronavirus cases on Thursday, according to the health ministry, bringing its total tally to 438,238, second only to the United States in confirmed cases.

Brazil's death toll rose 1,156 from a day earlier to 26,754 confirmed fatalities, just shy of a record 1,188 deaths registered on May 21.

Sao Paulo, the largest city in South America and home to Brazil’s financial hub, will allow shops and malls to resume activities as it begins to reopen businesses after about two months of loosely enforced quarantine orders.

Bulgaria

Bulgaria plans to lift an obligatory 14-day quarantine from June 1 for travelers from most European Union (EU) countries, but not those states with the biggest coronavirus outbreaks, a senior health official said on Friday.

The quarantine will remain obligatory for travelers from Sweden, Belgium, Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Italy and Malta, the official said, as well as the UK, which is in a transition period after leaving the EU.

Angel Kunchev, the country's chief health inspector, said the anti-virus taskforce had proposed to the government to lift the quarantine as of June 1. The health minister still needs to approve the plan. A ban on the entry of visitors from outside the EU will remain in place.

Bulgaria registered eight new cases on Friday, bringing the tally to 2,475, including 136 deaths. Kunchev said 1,016 people have recovered from the virus.

Transparent plastic shields are installed at food stalls at the La Vega Central market as a precaution against the spread of the coronavirus in Santiago, Chile, May 28, 2020. (JORGE VILLEGAS / XINHUA)

Chile

Chile on Thursday said a total of 86,943 people have so far tested positive for the novel coronavirus and 890 have died.

In the 24-hour period ending 9 pm Wednesday, healthcare workers detected 4,654 new cases and 49 deaths, the largest number in a single day since the start of the outbreak.

According to Health Minister Jaime Manalich, 3,707 healthcare workers had contracted COVID-19, with "a very small number of them requiring hospitalization."

Colombia

A coronavirus quarantine will continue in Colombia's capital Bogota until at least June 15, the mayor said on Thursday, even as other parts of the country begin reopening.

More details will be given in a press conference on Saturday, Bogota Mayor Claudia Lopez said.

The city of 8 million will maintain current isolation, undertake no further reopening, intensify supervision at wholesale food sellers and increase coronavirus screenings jointly with the national health institute.

Bogota was one of the first areas of the Andean nation to put lockdown measures in place in late March. It is home to more than 8,000 of the country's 24,000 coronavirus cases.

All of Colombia is under quarantine until Sunday, though thousands of businesses are gradually reopening with safety protocols and reduced staff.

Croatia

Croatia will lift its entry ban for nationals from 10 European countries, Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic announced on Thursday at a government session.

Plenkovic said that nationals of Austria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Germany, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia will be able to enter Croatia as the epidemiological situations in those countries are similar to that in Croatia, in which the peak of the epidemic seems to be over.

As the situations improve in other countries, Plenkovic said, the list of countries whose nationals can enter Croatia will expand.

Croatia reported just one new COVID-19 case in the past 24 hours. From Monday to Wednesday, there were no new cases reported in the country, according to official website koronavirus.hr.

Egypt

Egypt on Thursday set a new record of single-day rise in COVID-19 infections after 1,127 new confirmed cases were reported, bringing the country's tally 20,793.

It was the first time Egypt's COVID-19 daily infections topped 1,000.

The Egyptian health ministry reported another 29 deaths, raising the death toll to 845.

France

France will allow restaurants, bars and cafes to reopen from June 2, though with more restrictions in Paris than elsewhere, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said. The government is also lifting a nationwide 100 km travel restriction and will reopen beaches and parks from next week. 

A ban on gatherings in public places of more than 10 people remains in place for now, and major sporting events will also be suspended until at least June 21, Philippe added. Cinemas will be allowed to open from June 22 unless the spread of the virus quickens once again.

The greater Paris region is now an "orange" zone, meaning it not as virus-free as almost all other regions designated "green", and the easing of restrictions will be more cautious, Philippe said.

A contact-tracing app, allowing health authorities to identify people who have been exposed to a COVID-19 carrier, will go live on June 2, Philippe said. 

France's COVID-19 tally rose by 3,325 to 149,071, the biggest increase since a 4,183 increase on May 6, after the inclusion of data from a new tracking system boosted, according to the health ministry.

"The increase compared to yesterday is due to more efficient tracking, not to the epidemiological situation in France," the ministry said in a statement. 

The ministry said the death toll rose by 66 to 28,662, the eighth day that the number of daily deaths remained below 100.

Health Minister Olivier Veran said the virus' reproduction rate, known as the "R" rate, is below 1 across almost the whole country.

READ MORE: ECDC: Border closures of little use against COVID-19 spread

Restaurant staff prepare for the reopening of their restaurant in Boulogne-Billancourt, outside Paris, May 28, 2020. (CHRISTOPHE ENA / AP)

Germany

Germany’s new coronavirus cases held below 1,000, and the infection rate dropped further beneath the key threshold of 1.0.

There were 672 new cases in the 24 hours through Friday morning, bringing the total to 182,196, according to John Hopkins data. That compares with 324 the previous day. Fatalities increased by 42 to 8,470. 

The reproduction factor of the virus fell to 0.61 on Thursday from 0.68 the day before, according to the latest estimate from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI). 

According to RKI data on Friday, the number of confirmed cases rose by 741 to 180,458. The reported death toll rose by 39 to 8,450.

A university in Germany has suspended a clinical study using the anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine for COVID-19 for two weeks, Spiegel Online reported on Thursday, after the World Health Organization decided this week to pause a large trial over safety concerns.

Peter Kremsner, medical director at the Tuebingen University Hospital, said an assessment will be made on whether to continue the study, reported Spiegel.

Italy

Deaths from the COVID-19 epidemic in Italy climbed by 70 on Thursday, against 117 the day before, the Civil Protection Agency said, while the daily tally of new cases edged up to 593 from 584 on Wednesday.

Italy's death toll now stands at 33,142, the agency said, the third highest in the world after those of the United States and Britain.

The number of confirmed cases amounts to 231,732, the sixth highest global tally behind those of the United States, Russia, Spain, Britain and Brazil.

People registered as currently carrying the illness fell to 47,986 from 50,966 the day before.

Kenya

Kenya's Ministry of Health on Thursday confirmed 147 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 1,618.

Mutahi Kagwe, cabinet secretary in the Ministry of Health, told journalists that 13 patients recovered in the last 24 hours, raising the total number of recoveries to 421.

Another three persons have died from COVID-19, pushing the death toll to 58, Kagwe said, adding that those patients had underlying conditions.

Libya

The Libyan National Center for Disease Control reported six new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, raising the nationwide tally to 105, including five deaths and 41 recoveries.

The center reported one recovery and one death over the last 24 hours.

After the UN-backed government on Wednesday extended a curfew for 10 days in its further efforts to curb the pandemic, authorities on Thursday decided to investigate the spread of the virus in the southwestern city of Sabha amid a significant increase in COVID-19 cases after residents returned from abroad.

The UN-backed government also decided to ban the entry into and exit from Sabha and imposed a 24-hour curfew for seven days starting from Thursday, in order to fight the pandemic.

Malawi

Malawi reported 102 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, bringing the total number of infections to 203, including four deaths, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Health and Population Services said Thursday.

"Of the 102 confirmed cases, 92 have been recorded from Malawian citizens returning home from South Africa on hired buses. Seven positive cases have been confirmed from samples that were collected from truck drivers and other travellers at Mwanza Border while three other positives have been confirmed in Lilongwe," spokesperson Joshua Malango told local media.

The country is expecting 2,800 more returnees from South Africa between Thursday and Friday, increasing public panic at the time social distancing is not observed in the country as political campaigns continue to draw thousands together ahead of the presidential election in a month time. 

Mali

Mali's health authorities said the country recorded 78 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, bringing the tally to 1,194.

According to the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs, two more deaths were recorded in the past 24 hours, bringing the death toll to 72.

Mexico

Mexico reported 3,377 new COVID-19 cases over the last 24 hours, bringing the nationwide tally to 81,400, the health ministry said on Thursday.

Another 447 deaths were recorded in the country, taking the death toll to 9,044, it said.

Morocco

The ratio of patients who have recovered from COVID-19 in Morocco has risen rapidly to about 68 percent, the Moroccan Ministry of Health said Thursday.

The epidemic situation showed some positive changes in the past days, as 5,195 out of 7,643 total patients had recovered, said the ministry's spokesperson in a daily briefing.

On Thursday, 42 more COVID-19 cases and 217 new recoveries were confirmed. The death toll remains at 202.

Mozambique

Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi announced on Thursday that the state of emergency enacted since April 1 to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic will be extended for the second time for another 30 days, starting on June 1.

Nyusi said in a televised address that it was essential to continue with the state of emergency and relevant restrictions as the number of confirmed cases doubled in the past two weeks.

Nyusi said that iInspections will be strengthened at markets, streets and borders, and the reopening of borders or resumption of activities in sport and culture sectors will be studied in light of the trend of the pandemic.

A man rides a bicycle with informational messages warning about the new coronavirus in the Mathare slum of Nairobi, Kenya, May 28, 2020. (BRIAN INGANGA / AP)

Namibia

Namibia, which has so far recorded zero coronavirus deaths, said on Thursday it would within days further ease restrictions on social and economic activities.

Most of the desert nation in southwest Africa, which has recorded only 22 confirmed COVID-19 infections with 14 recoveries, will ease restrictions to level three of its four-level lockdown system from June 2. However, the harbour town of Walvis Bay will revert to level one, the most restrictive, for seven days after two residents tested positive. 

President Hage Geingob urged public vigilance despite the easing of restrictions, which will allow schools to resume face-to-face classes and restaurants to receive sit-down customers.

Non-contact sports and gatherings of up to 50 people at weddings, funerals and other events will be allowed.

But clubs, casinos and gambling houses will remain closed as they are considered high-risk areas while truck drivers arriving in Namibia will be screened, tested on arrival and quarantined for no less than 14 days.

Netherlands

The Dutch government has forbidden the transportation of mink and their manure out of fear of novel coronavirus infections, the Dutch Ministries of Health, Welfare and Sport and Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality wrote in a letter to the country's parliament on Thursday.

Earlier this week, Dutch authorities said that a mink had likely passed COVID-19 to a human after investigation already showed a first mink-human infection in the previous week. The suspected mink-to-human transmissions occurred at two different mink farms in the province of North Brabant.

READ MORE: Dutch govt: 2nd case of mink transmitting virus to human

In addition to the transportation ban, the ministries also banned visits to mink stables and introduced a stricter hygiene protocol for visitors to mink farms. Mink farmers must also ensure that dogs, cats and ferrets do not enter or leave the company premises.

The number of confirmed cases in the Netherlands rose by 182 from Wednesday to a total of 45,950, the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment said on Thursday. The reported death toll grew by 32 to 5,903.

Portugal

Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa on Thursday said the result of the first-phase deconfinement in the country, which took place in the first half of May, was "positive".

"The first phase did not hurt, and the situation today is controlled. National graph (of the pandemic) is favorable," said the president.

According to him, Portugal is experiencing a "continuous and decreasing evolution" in the number of hospitalizations and patients in intensive care, and is now ready to "move forward" and return to a "new normality."

Assessment of the results from the second-phase deconfinement, which began in mid-May, will be made on June 8.

Portugal recorded another 13 deaths from COVID-19 and 304 new cases in the last 24 hours, bringing the toll to 1,369 among the tally of 31,596 confirmed cases.

Romania

Romanian Prime Minister Ludovic Orban announced late Thursday the relaxation of a series of measures starting from June 1, including allowing outdoor sports events without spectators.

According to a governmental decision signed by the prime minister, the relaxed measures related to sports include allowing sports competitions to be held outdoors and professional water athletes to compete even in indoor pools.

However, the above measures do not apply to sports games with physical contact. In addition, all competitions are to run without audience and epidemic prevention requirements must be observed.

According to the decision, indoor training for professional athletes must ensure a space of seven square meters per person.

Romania reported its first COVID-19 case on Feb 26. The epidemic in the country is still at its plateau, with 197 new cases confirmed in the last 24 hours.

Russia

Russia on Friday reported 232 deaths from the new coronavirus in the last 24 hours, a record one-day amount that pushed the nationwide death toll to 4,374.

Officials said 8,572 new infections had been confirmed, bringing the national tally to 387,623, the third highest reported total in the world after the United States and Brazil.

READ MORE: Putin orders parade preparations after 'outbreak peaks' in Russia

Somalia

Somalia's health ministry on Thursday recorded 97 new COVID-19 cases, raising the country's total number of infections to 1,828.

Health Minister Fawziya Abikar said another five deaths were registered, bringing the death toll to 72.

Abikar also said that 45 more patients have recovered from COVID-19, bringing the total number of recoveries to 310.

According to the UN, the cases are surging at a time when Somalia is struggling to contain floods that have affected nearly a million people and desert locusts that are devouring crops and pasture. The UN refugee agency expressed concern that the virus may spread to internally displaced person (IDP) settlements and among health workers.

According to UNHCR, one IDP and one refugee had tested positive for COVID-19 as of May 17. 

Spain

Spain said its coronavirus death toll reached 27,119 on Thursday, rising by just one for the second day in a row as authorities fine-tune a new way of logging cases and deaths.

The health ministry's data showed 38 people died over the last seven days, down from hundreds of daily deaths reported a month ago, while a total of 237,906 cases have been detected since the beginning of the outbreak.

Since Spain began to gradually ease its stringent confinement measures at the beginning of May, a handful of minor outbreaks have sprung up across the country, Health Minister Salvador Illa said on Thursday.

One cluster was detected in an industrial zone in the Catalan province of Lleida, another in the southern town of Totana, and a third in the central province of Cuenca.

This handout image released by 10 Downing Street shows British Prime Minister Boris Johnson speaking at a remote press conference to update the nation on the COVID-19 pandemic. Inside 10 Downing Street in central London on May 28, 2020. (PIPPA FOWLES / 10 DOWNING STREET / AFP)

UK

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Thursday unveiled some "limited" and "cautious" easing of the country's coronavirus lockdown measures, stressing that the changes were "small tentative steps forward".

Chairing Thursday's Downing Street daily briefing, Johnson said that from Monday, nurseries and schools will reopen, starting with Reception, Year 1 and Year 6. From June 15, secondary schools will begin to provide face-to-face contact time for Years 10 and 12, Johnson said.

Outdoor retail and car showrooms will be allowed to reopen from Monday and other non-essential retail will reopen on June 15, he said.

Also starting Monday, up to six people will be able to meet outdoors, providing members of different households continue to stay two meters apart, said Johnson.

There could be further local outbreaks and the brakes will be put on as required and where necessary, he noted.  

ALSO READ: England's COVID-19 test and trace system begins

The Department of Health and Social Care said another 377 deaths were registered as of Wednesday afternoon, bringing the country's toll to 37,837. As of Thursday morning, the number of confirmed cases rose by 1,887 to 269,127, according to the department.

Ukraine

Ukraine reported 429 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, taking its tally to 22,811, including 679 deaths, the country's health ministry said.

As of Friday, 1,693 children and 4,411 health workers have been diagnosed with COVID-19, while 8,934 patients have recovered, 

US

A few cities in the United States, including New York, San Francisco and Chicago, on Thursday outlined the first steps for reopening.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said he expected the reopening's first phase to be announced by the second week of June and, in line with the state's plan, would include four sectors: construction, manufacturing, wholesale suppliers and non-essential retail.

The city's famed restaurants and bars will remain closed, except for takeout and delivery, but the City Council unveiled legislation to allow outdoor dining to help the industry recover from the economic crisis spurred by the coronavirus pandemic.

In San Francisco, Mayor London Breed said that the city will open child care and outdoor museums June 1, but a stay-at-home order remains in place indefinitely.

Starting from June 15, restrictions will be loosened on outdoor dining, indoor retail and certain outdoor activities like summer camps. Professional sports can resume, but without spectators. In the next phase, scheduled for July 13, hair salons will open and indoor dining and real estate open houses will be permitted.

In Chicago, more than 130,000 workers will be permitted to return to work on Wednesday, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said.

Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe reported 17 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, bringing the tally to 149, the Ministry of Health and Child Care said on Friday.

The capital Harare leads with 64 cases, followed by Masvingo province with 25, Matabeleland South with 16 and Bulawayo with 15, the ministry said in a statement.

The new cases involved Zimbabwean nationals returning from Mozambique, South Africa and Britain who were in quarantine centers, according to the statement.

The death toll stands at four and a total of 28 recoveries had been reported.

Greece 

Greece said on Friday it will open to visitors from 29 countries from June 15, days before its peak tourism season begins.

The countries are: Germany, Austria, Denmark, Norway, Cyprus, Israel, Switzerland, Japan, Malta, Bulgaria, China, Croatia, Australia, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Albania, Estonia, Latvia, Lebanon, Lithuania, Hungary, South Korea, Serbia, Montenegro, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Czech Republic and Finland.

Visitors will be randomly tested, the tourism ministry said, and the government would monitor and evaluate developments related to the coronavirus. The list will be updated before July 1, the tourism ministry said.

The Mediterranean nation, which emerged from a decade-long debt crisis in late 2018, relies heavily on tourism - about 20 percent of its output - for an economic recovery.

A nationwide lockdown imposed in March helped Greece contain the spread of COVID-19 infections to just below 3,000 cases, a relatively low number compared with elsewhere in the European Union. But it brought its business and tourism sector to a virtual standstill.