Global deaths from COVID-19 have tonight passed the 50,000 mark after Italy announced 760 new fatalities in 24 hours.
The number of confirmed coronavirus cases passed the one million mark on Thursday evening. More than 200,000 have recovered from the disease.
While it was more grim news from Italy on the fatalities front, there is a glimmer of hope that containment measures are paying off. The number of daily new infections now stands at 4,668, down from 6,153 a week ago.
Pressure on hospitals in hard-hit Lombardy continued to ease, with more than 800 people recovered and 165 fewer people hospitalised with COVID-19 compared to a day earlier. Intensive care units are still saturated, but overall, Lombardy added just under 1,300 new positive cases, with about half of those infected being treated at home.
More than 10,000 medical personnel have been infected nationwide and 69 doctors have died, according to the National Institutes of Health and the Italian association of doctors.
Earlier, Spain’s death count passed the 10,000 mark as a record 950 new COVID-19 victims were announced.
France, in announcing 471 new COVID-19 deaths on Thursday evening, revealed at least 884 of its total 4,503 fatalities had occurred in old people’s homes.
- Coronavirus updates from the rest of Europe
The UK announces it will up the number of coronavirus tests it does from 10,000 now to 100,000 by the end of April - A French medicine watchdog has warned of the dangerous side effects of malaria and HIV drugs being tested against the novel coronavirus.
- The British comedian Eddie Large has died aged 78 after contracting coronavirus in hospital where he was being treated for heart failure, according to UK media reports quoting his son.
- The Glaswegian found fame in the 1970s and 80s in the duo Little and Large.
British Airways will furlough 28,000 workers as a result of the coronavirus lockdown, says a trade union.
