The Latest on the coronavirus pandemic. The new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms for most people. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness or death.

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — New Zealand reported no new coronavirus cases Monday, marking a significant moment that indicated the country’s bold strategy of trying to eliminate the virus was working.

It was the first time since the outbreak took hold in mid-March that the country reported zero new cases. Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield said the figures were clearly encouraging, but the result represented a moment in time and it won’t be until later this week that officials will know if new cases are continuing to pop up in the community. He said the result was a cause for celebration and was symbolic of the efforts of the entire country.

New Zealand closed its borders and imposed a strict monthlong lockdown after the outbreak began. The lockdown rules were eased a little last week to help reopen the economy, but many restrictions remain in place.

Many businesses — including most retail stores and sit-down restaurants — remain closed, most school children are learning from home, and people are required to maintain social distancing. New Zealand has reported nearly 1,500 cases of the virus and 20 deaths.

Some businesses in Malaysia begin to reopen before lockdown ends

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Many business sectors reopened Monday in some parts of Malaysia for the first time since a partial coronavirus lockdown began March 18.

The easing of restrictions, days before the lockdown was due to end May 12, came as Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin’s government sought to balance between curbing the virus and reviving the hard-hit economy. But the move has split public opinion amid fears that the sudden reopening of economic activities could spark a new wave of infection.

Nine of the country’s 13 states have either refused to open up yet or restricted the list of businesses that can operate. More than half a million Malaysians have also protested by signing online petitions to call for a more gradual approach to rolling back the restrictions.

Muhyiddin said Friday it was time to heal the economy, which has lost billions of dollars, but businesses must follow strict health measures and mass gatherings will still be banned. That means places such as schools, cinemas and worship houses will stay shut, group sports are prohibited, and interstate travel remains banned.

Virus cases have dropped sharply in recent weeks but the number crept up with 227 infections reported over the weekend. Malaysia has confirmed 6,298 cases, with 105 deaths.

Trump says he thinks COVID-19 vaccine will be available by end of year

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump says he believes a vaccine for COVID-19 will be available by the end of the year.

Trump also says the U.S. government is putting its “full power and might” behind remdesivir, a drug that has shown early promise as a treatment for the disease caused by the new coronavirus.

Trump commented Sunday night during a televised town hall sponsored by Fox News Channel.

Trump sat inside the Lincoln Memorial and fielded questions from two Fox hosts, as well as from people who submitted questions over Fox’s social media platforms.

Trump responded to a Nebraska man who recovered from COVID-19 by saying: “We think we are going to have a vaccine by the end of this year.”

He also said his administration was pushing hard for remdesivir.

U.S. public health officials have said a vaccine is probably a year to 18 months away. But Dr. Anthony Fauci said in late April that it’s conceivable, if a vaccine is developed soon, it could be in wide distribution as soon as January.

Read the full story here.

Japan task force recommends social distancing measures stay in place

TOKYO — Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura, tasked with Japan’s coronavirus measures, met with a panel of experts Friday and said social distancing efforts under the state of emergency should be kept in place for a while to prevent a resurgence of infections.

Nishimura quoted experts on the government-commissioned task force as saying the spread has slowed — but not enough.

“If we relax the measures with insufficient decrease, infections will immediately bounce back and our effort so far will entirely go to waste,” Nishimura said. “The experts recommended that the current measures should be kept in place.”

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe declared a month-long state of emergency on April 7 in Tokyo and six other urban areas, requesting residents stay at home. He later expanded the guidelines to the entire country. Requests for nonessential business closures were also issued in Tokyo and several other prefectures.

Abe said Thursday he planned to extend the state of emergency beyond its scheduled end on May 6 because infections are spreading and hospitals are overburdened. He is expected to announce a decision within days.

Local governors in hard-hit areas and health experts concerned about the collapse of medical systems have called for a month-long extension.

Japan has 14,281 confirmed cases, up 182 from the day before, with 432 deaths, according to the health ministry tally Friday.

Malaysia to reopen most businesses ahead of schedule Monday

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Malaysia will allow most economic sectors and business activities to reopen Monday, days before a two-month lockdown is scheduled to end.

After coronavirus infections fell sharply in recent weeks, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin says there is a need to revive the economy as the country has lost 63 billion ringgit ($14.7 billion) since a partial lockdown began March 18. It is due to end May 12, but Muhyiddin says most businesses, including restaurants, can open their doors beginning Monday with strict social distancing rules and health guidelines in effect.

That includes health screening for staff and customers, and registering details of visitors. In a televised May Day speech, Muhyiddin said mass gatherings will still be banned, which means places such as schools, cinemas and worship houses will stay shut, and group sports are prohibited.

Muhyiddin also said Muslims cannot return to their villages to celebrate the end of the fasting month, as interstate travel will remain banned. He urged Malaysians to embrace the new norm of life amid a cautious approach to ending the lockdown.

Daily infections have dropped to double digits in the past two weeks, with Malaysia now reporting 6,002 infections and 102 deaths.

Beijing parks and museums reopened to public

BEIJING — Beijing’s parks and museums, including the ancient Forbidden City, reopened to the public Friday after being closed for months due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The Forbidden City, past home to China’s emperors, is permitting just 5,000 visitors daily, down from 80,000. And parks are allowing people to visit at 30% of the usual capacity.

Large-scale group activities remain on hold and visitors must book tickets in advance online, according to Gao Dawei, deputy director of the Beijing Gardening and Greening Bureau.

Beijing on Thursday downgraded its level of emergency response to the virus from first to second tier, but temperature checks and social distancing remain in force.

The change comes at the start of the five-day May 1 holiday and in advance of China’s rescheduled gathering of the National People’s Congress on May 22.

China reported 12 new virus cases Friday, six brought from overseas, and no new deaths for the 16th consecutive day.

Northeastern states in the U.S. to form supply chain

NEW YORK — After working with neighboring states on coronavirus-related closing and reopening plans, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Sunday that New York will join with states from Massachusetts to Delaware to create a regional supply chain for masks, gowns, ventilators, testing supplies and other equipment vital to fighting the disease.

The states are joining together after months of dealing separately with what Cuomo said was a “totally inefficient and ineffective” purchasing process that pitted all 50 states against each other, as well as the federal government and other entities, driving up prices as supplies dried up.

New York buys about $2 billion worth of medical equipment supplies per year, Cuomo said. The other states joining the consortium together spend about $5 billion per year. Working together, they’ll have stronger purchasing power and improve their clout with global suppliers, Cuomo said.

“It will make us more competitive in the international marketplace and I believe it will save taxpayers money,” Cuomo said. “I also believe it will actually help us get the equipment, because we have trouble still getting the equipment.”

The other states in the consortium are Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. One goal, the states’ governors said, is to find suppliers within the region, instead of relying on swamped manufacturers in China and other faraway places.

Michigan’s governor says protesters “depicted some of the worst racism” in U.S. history

WASHINGTON — Michigan’s governor says gun-carrying protesters who demonstrated inside her state’s Capitol “depicted some of the worst racism” and “awful parts” of U.S. history.

Democrat Gretchen Whitmer tells CNN that the protests featured “Confederate Flags, and nooses,” as well as swastikas.

Members of the Michigan Liberty Militia protested the state’s stay-at-home orders this week, some with weapons and tactical gear and their faces partially covered. They went inside the Capitol, where being armed is allowed, then demanded access to the House floor, which is prohibited.

Some went to the Senate gallery, where a senator said armed men shouted at her.

Michigan’s Republican-controlled Legislature has questioned Whitmer’s authority to extend stay-at-home orders amid the coronavirus pandemic. But the governor used an executive order to extend a state of emergency declaration and has directed most businesses statewide to remain closed.

Mentioned as a possible running mate for presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, Whitmer said Sunday, “This isn’t something we just negotiate ourselves out of and it’s a political matter.”

“This is a public health crisis,” she said.

Pompeo says China has spread of disease in the past and must be held accountable for COVID-19

WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says China has been responsible for the spread of disease in the past and must be held accountable for the coronavirus pandemic that originated in the country.

In comments likely to spark protests from Beijing and elsewhere, Pompeo said “China has a history of infecting the world.” He cited poor safety and security at epidemiological laboratories, including in the city of Wuhan where the virus was first reported.

He stressed that he had no reason to believe that the virus was deliberately spread but he ramped up already harsh U.S. criticism of the Chinese for their response to the outbreak.

“Remember, China has a history of infecting the world, and they have a history of running substandard laboratories,” Pompeo said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week” program.

“These are not the first times that we’ve had a world exposed to viruses as a result of failures in a Chinese lab. And so, while the intelligence community continues to do its work, they should continue to do that, and verify so that we are certain, I can tell you that there is a significant amount of evidence that this came from that laboratory in Wuhan.”

Pompeo appeared to be referring to previous outbreaks of respiratory viruses, like SARS, which started in China. But his remark may be seen as offensive in China given the history of U.S. discrimination against the Chinese and people of Chinese origin dating to the 19th century.

Read the full story.

Italy’s Health Ministry: Number of deaths in 24-hour period ending Sunday was lowest day-to-day since March 10

ROME — On the eve of the start in Italy of partially eased restriction on citizens’ movements during COVID-19 lockdown, the nation received some encouraging news after weeks of grim daily tallies of caseload and deaths.

Health Ministry figures put the number of deaths in the 24-hour period ending Sunday evening at 174, the lowest day-to-day number since 168 on March 10, at the start of national lockdown.

The number of new cases, 1,389, was also the lowest the nation has seen in two months. Italy’s number of known COVID-19 infections total is 210,717, although authorities say the number is likely higher as many infections in people with no or almost no symptoms are believed to have gone undetected.

Italy’s death toll stands at 28,884, but that number, too, could be much higher, since many elderly persons in recent weeks died in nursing homes but weren’t tested to see if they had coronavirus infection.

Police officer caught on video pointing stun gun at man over social distancing violation

NEW YORK — A New York City police officer who was caught on video Saturday pointing a stun gun at a man and violently taking him to the ground over an alleged social distancing violation has been stripped of his gun and badge and placed on desk duty pending an internal investigation.

Bystander video showed the plainclothes officer, who was not wearing a protective face mask, slapping 33-year-old Donni Wright in the face, punching him in the shoulder and dragging him to a sidewalk after leveling him in a crosswalk in Manhattan’s East Village.

“There will unquestionably be a careful look at what happened there,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said Sunday.

Police spokeswoman Sgt. Mary Frances O’Donnell said Wright “took a fighting stance against the officer” when he was ordered to disperse and was arrested on charges including assault on a police officer and resisting arrest. Wright had not been arraigned as of Sunday afternoon, prosecutors said.

A message seeking comment was left with the police officers’ union.

Birx calls protests “devastatingly worrisome”

WASHINGTON — White House coronavirus coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx is calling it “devastatingly worrisome” to see protesters in Michigan and elsewhere not wear masks or practice social distancing as they demonstrate against stay-at-home orders.

Birx was responding to the hundreds of protesters who crowded the Michigan statehouse last week to push for a reopening of businesses.

She tells “Fox News Sunday” that people “will feel guilty for the rest of our lives” if they pick up the virus because they didn’t take precautions and then unwittingly spread it to family members who are especially vulnerable to severe illness due to preexisting conditions or older age.

Protests took place in several states over the weekend amid growing frustration over the economic impact from stay at home orders during the coronavirus outbreak.

Birx says: “We need to protect each other at the same time we’re voicing our discontent.”

Italy hires nearly 1,000 to work in prisons

ROME — Nearly 1,000 health personnel have been hired to work in Italy’s chronically overcrowded prisons during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Regional Affairs Minister Francesco Boccia told reporters Sunday if more health workers are needed, they will be added.

The staff starts on Monday and will work until July 31. Twenty-thousand people applied for the jobs. The initiative was presented at a news conference outside Rome’s Rebibbia prison, where 62 of the temporary health workers will be deployed.

At the start of Italy’s 10-week-old outbreak, inmates at several prisons in Italy rioted to protest their vulnerability for contagion during the pandemic. Some judges have authorized the transfer of inmates to temporary house arrest to reduce the risk of contagion in crowded conditions.

Tanzanian president questions testing kits

NAIROBI, Kenya — Tanzania’s president is questioning the quality of imported coronavirus testing kits but expressed faith in a herbal concoction that Madagascar’s president claims is a remedy for COVID-19.

While African nations have been largely praised for their efforts to counter the virus, Tanzanian President John Magufuli has been criticized for refusing to close markets and places of worship because he claims the virus “cannot sit on the body of Christ.”

His new comments Sunday are drawing another wave of skepticism. The country has 480 confirmed cases but some opposition members believe other cases haven’t been announced.

The president wants to investigate the national labs because he says some tests on samples from fruit and animals came back positive. He says that proves there are people without the virus who have tested positive.

Magufuli has sent representatives to Madagascar to bring home for testing the herbal concoction that medical experts have sharply questioned. There are no approved drugs for COVID-19.

28 from nursing home admitted to hospital in Rome

ROME — Rome’s infectious diseases hospital has admitted 28 patients from a nursing home who were confirmed to have COVID-19.

Spallanzani Hospital, which is the hub for all coronavirus patients in the region that includes Italy’s capital, said the patients were admitted Saturday from the Latina Nursing Home Clinic.

Prosecutors have been investigating nursing homes both in the epicenter of the country’s outbreak since late February, as well as in the south and other less-stricken areas. In several cases, the majority of the homes’ residents contracted the illness and had many fatalities.

Relatives have complained they were kept in the dark about their loved one’s condition. Some nursing home workers, including at a 1,000-bed facility in Milan, have alleged they were told by management not to wear protective masks near residents so the elderly wouldn’t be frightened.

Spallanzani said in a statement Sunday that the hospital was beefing up nursing services to facilitate contact with the elderly patients’ families through video phone calls and adding personnel to the switchboard so they can keep relatives informed.

Crisis being used to restrict press freedom, watchdog group says

BERLIN — An international media rights group says the coronavirus pandemic is being used by governments around the world to increase restrictions on press freedoms.

The International Press Institute issued a report Sunday to coincide with World Press Freedom Day 2020, which concludes that in both democratic and autocratic states the “public health crisis has allowed governments to exercise control over the media on the pretext of preventing the spread of disinformation.”

It says authoritarian governments have been abusing emergency measures to “further stifle independent media and criminalize journalism,” while in democracies “efforts to control the public narrative and restrict access to information around the pandemic are on the rise.”

The Vienna-based organization said it has documented 162 press freedom violations related to coronavirus coverage over the past two and a half months. Almost a third of the violations have involved the arrest, detention or charging of journalists.

World Press Freedom Day was proclaimed by the United Nations in 1993.

Ahead of this year’s event, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said the COVID-19 crisis has underscored the importance of a robust and free press.

He says “As the pandemic spreads, it has also given rise to a second pandemic of misinformation, from harmful health advice to wild conspiracy theories. The press provides the antidote: verified, scientific, fact-based news and analysis.”

Plane repatriating citizens crashes, killing 6

MADRID — The Spanish government has said three Spaniards, one Bolivian resident in Spain and two Bolivian air force pilots have died in a plane crash in Bolivia. The four passengers were on the way back to Spain as part of repatriation efforts amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Spanish government spokeswoman Jesús María Montero confirmed Sunday the nationality of the passengers of the plane crash that was reported by the Bolivian air force.

The Bolivian air force said the crash occurred Saturday when the small aircraft “on a humanitarian air mission” crashed during a flight between the Bolivian cities of Trinidad and Santa Cruz.

The air force said they will investigate the cause of the accident.

Russia will use helicopters, drones to mandate lockdown

MOSCOW — Russia’s National Guard will deploy helicopters and drones in Moscow to monitor compliance with lockdown measures during holidays this week.

There is concern that warm spring weather and a string of holidays could draw people in large numbers to leave home and gather in woodland parks.

Monday and Tuesday are legal holidays and Saturday marks the 75th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany, a day that usually sees huge outdoor gatherings.

Slovenia reports no new cases

LJUBLJANA, Slovenia — Slovenia on Sunday reported no new cases of infection with the new coronavirus for the first time since early March.

Authorities say that there were no positive results among the 500 tested samples. But they say two people have died to put the death toll at 96.

Slovenia recorded the first case of the new coronavirus infection on March 4th. The European Union nation then introduced strict lockdown measures which the authorities have started gradually to ease in the past days.

The total reported number of infections in Slovenia stands at 1,439. More than 55,000 people have been tested in the country of around 2 million people that borders Italy.

Sweden says EU is investigating remdesivir use

STOCKHOLM — The Swedish national drug and medicine supervision agency says the European Union is investigating on a rapid schedule whether the use of the drug remdesivir could be allowed for treating the coronavirus within the 27-nation bloc following a similar decision in the United States.

The Swedish Medical Products Agency’s infection department director, Charlotta Bergqvist, told Swedish broadcaster TV4 that the introduction of remdesivir with is now being studied with a high priority within the EU and a decision may be reached “in a few days.”

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently authorized emergency use of remdesivir on people hospitalized with severe COVID-19. The drug was originally developed for treatment of Ebola and produced by the California-based Gilead Sciences Inc.

Clinical trials have showed the drug has helped to shorten the recovery time for people who were seriously ill.

Italians awaiting new rules Monday

ROME — Italians are counting down the hours until they regain some measures of personal freedom after two months of nationwide lockdown to contain Europe’s first outbreak of COVID-19.

Starting Monday, parks and public gardens can reopen for strolling, jogging or biking. But people will have to stay a meter apart, ruling out picnics and playgrounds.

Italians were already outside in large numbers Sunday, walking down streets and chatting on sidewalks. Many were equipped with masks, but in Rome, some lowered them to talk.

Experts advising the government have warned citizens against lowering their guard, and Premier Giuseppe Conte cautioned that freedoms could be curtailed if the rate of contagion starts rising again.

Restaurants and cafes will be allowed to offer customers takeout. Takeout coffee in Italy never really caught on in a big way, since knocking down a tiny espresso at the cafe’s counter is a time-honored social tradition. So bars might have to scramble to order more plastic cups.

Brief funerals services are now allowed, but no more than 15 masked mourners can attend.

In Milan, some seats on trams had stenciled warnings saying they must be left open. Cash-strapped transit systems are pleading for aid from the central government to ensure enough drivers and vehicles to meet safety distancing rules.

South Korea will further relax restrictions

SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea says it’ll further relax its social distancing guidelines amid a continued slowdown of new coronavirus cases there.

Health Minister Park Neung-hoo said Sunday the government will allow public facilities to reopen in phases starting Wednesday.

He says public parks, outdoor sports and leisure facilities and museums will reopen earlier than welfare centers, public theaters and concert halls.

Park says schools will have students back to their classrooms in phased steps. Currently, South Korean students are taking classes online.

Earlier Sunday, South Korea reported 13 additional cases, taking the country’s total to 10,793 with 251 deaths.

Pope calls for collaboration on vaccine

VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis is calling for international collaboration in the search for a vaccine and treatment for COVID-19.

Speaking from the Apostolic Palace library on Sunday after delivering his blessing, Francis stressed the importance of guaranteeing “universal access to the essential technologies that allow every infected person, in every part of the world, to receive the necessary health care.”

Some cross-country research is already underway to develop a safe, effective vaccine, and scientists and doctors in various nations have been sharing experiences in using different drugs to treat patients.

The pope also invited faithful of all religions to spiritually unite in prayer, fasting and works of charity on May 14 to “implore God to help humanity to overcome the coronavirus pandemic.”

Spaniards enjoying outdoor exercise

MADRID — Spaniards are enjoying their second day of outdoor exercise while preparing for further loosening of lockdown measures.

Spanish health officials reported the lowest daily death toll in six weeks on Sunday and new confirmed infections dropped to a low not seen since a state of emergency was declared March 14.

Government expert Fernando Simón says Spain now has the lowest number of new cases among Europe’s seven hardest-hit countries, but insists the virus isn’t defeated.

Barcelona’s beachfront promenade was again packed, making it impossible in some spots to maintain the 2-meter social distancing rule.

Spain will majorly rollback lockdown measures Monday. Eateries will be able to serve customers who have placed takeaway orders. Shops under 400 square meters can reopen for appointments as long as there is always a 1-to-1 ratio of customer to worker. Face masks will be obligatory on public transport.

In total, Spain has reported more than 217,400 cases and more than 25,260 deaths.

Bangkok residents stock up on beer

BANGKOK — Residents of the Thai capital Bangkok strolled in its parks, booked haircuts and stocked up on beer as they enjoyed their first day of eased restrictions that were imposed weeks ago to combat the spread of COVID-19.

The top perk in a city famous for its eateries may have been the reopening of restaurants. But it was not clear how many were actually serving seated customers again, since guidelines would make it hard for many to turn a profit.

There was also a partial lifting on the sale of beer and other alcoholic drinks that will allow takeaway purchases, even while bars remain closed.

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