The United Nations on Thursday issued a new appeal for $4.7 billion in funding to "protect millions of lives and stem the spread of coronavirus in fragile countries." 

The money is on top of the $2 billion the UN already called for when it launched its global humanitarian response plan on March 25. It has received about half of that money so far.

A top health expert warned U.S. lawmakers Wednesday to brace for a "long and difficult" war against the coronavirus outbreak, as he urged dramatically expanding testing to rein in the pandemic.

Coronavirus patients declared recovered who later test positive for the disease are still expelling dead lung cells rather than getting a new infection, the World Health Organization (WHO) told AFP on Wednesday.

The U.N. aviation agency on Wednesday warned of possible pilot fatigue and lapsed licenses as airlines get ready to fly again once travel restrictions to slow the spread of the coronavirus are lifted.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Wednesday he could begin to ease Britain's nationwide coronavirus lockdown next week, but warned he would do nothing to risk a new surge of cases.

Johnson was speaking the day after the country's official virus death toll overtook Italy's to become the highest in Europe, with more than 32,000 fatalities related to COVID-19 -- behind only the United States in the global tallies.

Spain's parliament on Wednesday voted to extend the country's state of emergency, allowing stringent coronavirus lockdown measures to remain in place for at least two more weeks.

Germany is planning an almost complete return to normality in May, with schools and shops reopening and the return of top-flight Bundesliga football matches, Chancellor Angela Merkel said Wednesday.

The coronavirus pandemic is "under control" in Turkey, the country's health minister said on Wednesday, but warned citizens they still need to take the necessary precautions.

The mayor of Manaus, the biggest city in the Amazon rainforest region, asked world leaders Tuesday for help fighting the novel coronavirus, which has brought his city's health system to the brink of collapse.

China will not prioritise inviting international experts in to investigate the source of COVID-19 until after the pandemic is beaten, Beijing's ambassador to the UN in Geneva said Wednesday.