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At a glance: Covid-19 news from around the globe

Author Luis Sepulveda has died
Author Luis Sepulveda has died

There have been more than 2,083,820 reported infections around the world, from which more than 137,500 people have died, according to an AFP tally at 11am this morning based on official sources.

The United States has the most deaths of any country with 30,985 fatalities out of 639,644 reported infections.

Europe has now topped 90,000 deaths, or more than 65% of global deaths, and the World Health Organization warns the continent is still "in the eye of the storm".

Italy is the hardest-hit country in Europe, with 21,645 deaths, Spain follows, with 19,130, then France 17,167 and Britain 12,868.

Chilean world-famous author dies

Celebrated writer Luis Sepulveda, author of the best-selling 1992 novel "The Old Man Who Read Love Stories" and exiled from his native Chile during the Pinochet dictatorship, has died in Spain of Covid-19 at the age of 70.

Masks become mandatory

Polish people are now obliged to cover their noses and mouths in public places, using either a mask or scarf.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has also ordered the state's nearly 20 million residents to cover their faces when in stores or using public transport.

Amazon shutters French sites

Amazon has closed its distribution centres in France following a court order to limit deliveries to essential goods pending a review of safety measures for its staff.

The duration of the closure is "unknown", the Amazon France director says.

Nigeria lockdown turns deadly

Nigerian security agents have killed 18 people in their enforcement of confinement measures, according to the country's human rights body.

Outbreak on French aircraft carrier 

France's defence ministry says a third of the nearly 2,000 sailors who were aboard the Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier and support craft when an outbreak occurred at sea have tested positive for the virus.

More than 4.4 billion confined  

More than 4.4 billion people, or nearly 57% of the world's population, have been asked or ordered to follow confinement measures in nearly 110 countries or territories, according to an AFP database.

The British government is expected to extend a nationwide lockdown, in place since 23 March, for another three weeks.

Japan has expanded a state of emergency to cover the whole country, allowing regional governors to urge people to stay indoors, but with no punitive measures or legal force.

Senegal has extended a travel ban on all flights to and from its soil until 31 May.

'Health bombs' 

A priest from the Jesuit Refugee Service has warned migrant hotspots on five Greek islands in the Aegean Sea have become "boils on Europe's skin" and "health bombs" that could explode.

The priest, Maurice Joyeux, said several migrant camps in Greece have become fetid and dangerous, especially now with Covid-19.