India’s lockdown extension also brings what the Times of India calls “the most significant easing of the national lockdown yet,” with states being given greater power to reopen markets and standalone stores, bus and other public transport travel being allowed between and within states. States will colour-code zones according to the level of infection, and allow greater or lesser economic activity depending on this. NDTV explains the easing as follows: The practice of work from home should be followed to the extent possible, the Centre said. At workplaces, staggering of work hours should be adopted. There should be provision for thermal scanning, hand wash and sanitizers and common areas and rules of social distancing should be maintained. The government has also not allowed any re-opening of areas which draw a large number of people -- shopping malls and multiplexes, gymnasiums, swimming pools, entertainment parks, theatres, bars and auditoriums, assembly halls, hotels, restaurants and other hospitality services. In these extraordinary times, the Guardian’s editorial independence has never been more important. Because no one sets our agenda, or edits our editor, we can keep delivering quality, trustworthy, fact-checked journalism each and every day. Free from commercial or political bias, we can report fearlessly on world events and challenge those in power. Your support protects the Guardian’s independence. We believe every one of us deserves equal access to accurate news and calm explanation. No matter how unpredictable the future feels, we will remain with you, delivering high quality news so we can all make critical decisions about our lives, health and security – based on fact, not fiction. Support the Guardian from as little as $1 – and it only takes a minute. Thank you. Move Rohingya on Bangladesh island to refugee camps: UN chief Hundreds of Rohingya rescued by Bangladesh and sent to a flood-prone island after being stranded at sea for weeks should be moved to existing refugee camps, the UN secretary general has said. The appeal by Antonio Guterres to Bangladesh’s foreign minister in a letter obtained Sunday by AFP comes as concern grows over a coronavirus outbreak in the sprawling camps near the border with Myanmar. A fourth virus case has been detected in the crowded camps, officials said Sunday. The Rohingya on Bhashan Char island - a silty strip of land prone to violent and potentially deadly monsoon storms - were rescued in early May after floating adrift in the Bay of Bengal. Dhaka has said they were not initially sent on to the camps in the southeast as authorities were afraid they might have coronavirus. Guterres said the 308 refugees should be moved to the camps after their time in quarantine is completed. A bit of background on Taiwan’s exclusion from the WHO: Taiwan - officially the Republic of China - was a founding member of the WHO when the global health body was created in 1948. But it was expelled in 1972 a year after losing the “China” seat at the United Nations to the People’s Republic of China. Between 2009 and 2016 Beijing allowed Taiwan to attend the WHA as an observer under the name “Chinese Taipei”. It lost that status with the election in Taiwan of President Tsai Ing-wen who views the island as a de facto independent nation and does not subscribe to Beijing’s idea that it belongs to a “one China”. WHO committee to discuss Taiwan exclusion The World Health Organization (WHO) is to raise the question of Taiwan’s participation as an observer at the World Health Assembly (WHA), which opens virtually on Monday, before one of its committees, AFP reports. Taiwan is currently excluded from the WHO but in the midst of escalating tensions between Washington and Beijing around the novel coronavirus, the administration of US President Donald Trump has repeatedly called for the island’s participation at the WHA in spite of opposition from China. Many heads of state, government and ministers are expected to attend the two-day virtual meeting on the pandemic which the WHO hopes will take a physical form later in the year. Asked repeatedly on the subject at a news conference, the WHO said that it only has the role of secretariat of the assembly and that only member states can decide to invite Taiwan or not. In a document relating to the WHA agenda and dated 15 May, the head of the WHO said that the proposal was being “submitted to the General Committee for its consideration”. Due to the pandemic this ad-hoc committee will not be able to sit on Monday, delaying any ruling. It will have to decide on the issue during the physical meeting that the WHO hopes to organise at the end of the year. Nothing, however, prevents a country calling on Monday for a vote on the presence of Taiwan. The coronavirus pandemic is exacerbating the existing vulnerabilities of the world’s refugees and internally displaced people, according to a report. Research from the University of Birmingham has revealed that many undocumented migrants were anxious about seeking medical help – fearful of being reported to immigration authorities and being deported – and were therefore suffering in silence. The report, Understanding the Impact of Covid-19 on Forced Migrant Survivors of Sexual and Gender-based Violence, due to be published on Monday, took witness testimonies from more than 90 survivors and organisations in five countries, including the UK. It found that victims were finding themselves locked in with perpetrators, with no access to shelters or advice organisations, and as a result were having to suffer abuse. India extends lockdown In case you missed it: India has extended a nearly two-month-old lockdown by another two weeks with Mumbai, New Delhi, Chennai and some other key regions still battling to control the rising curve of coronavirus infections, reports the Associated Press. The government-run National Disaster Management authority said in a statement on Sunday that fresh guidelines will be issued that keep in view the need to open up economic activity. Indian media reports said that travel by air, rail and metro will remain shut down until the end of May. Schools, hotels, restaurants, bars, shopping malls, cinemas and places of worship will also be closed nationally. South Africa reports highest daily increase in cases South Africa on Sunday reported 1,160 new coronavirus infections, the highest daily number since the first case was recorded in March, AFP reports. “As of today, the total number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in South Africa is 15,515, with 1,160 new cases identified in the last 24 hour cycle of testing,” said the health ministry in a statement. The Western Cape province, popular with tourists, accounted for nearly 60% of the national numbers. The numbers of deaths rose by three to 263 from Saturday. Africa’s most industrialised economy has the highest numbers of infections in Africa, followed by Egypt, which has so far recorded 11,719 Covid-19 cases, including 612 deaths. The country has been under lockdown since March 27 and has embarked on an aggressive mass testing strategy with 460,873 tested so far. But some health experts are beginning to see the limits of the country’s lauded mass screening strategy, with results taking up to two weeks to come through. Hello and welcome to today’s global coverage of the coronavirus pandemic with me, Helen Sullivan. We welcome questions, comments, tips and news from your part of the world – get in touch on Twitter @helenrsullivan or via email: helen.sullivan@theguardian.com. South Africa has recorded its highest daily increase in cases, with 1,160 new cases confirmed. Africa’s most industrialised economy has the highest numbers of infections in Africa, followed by Egypt, which has so far recorded 11,719 Covid-19 cases, including 612 deaths. The country has been under lockdown since March 27 and has embarked on an aggressive mass testing strategy with 460,873 tested so far. But some health experts are beginning to see the limits of the country’s lauded mass screening strategy, with results taking up to two weeks to come through. Global infections pass 4.7 million. There are 4,702,603 confirmed cases of coronavirus worldwide. At least 314,476 people have died over the course of the pandemic so far. South Africa reports highest daily increase in cases. South Africa on Sunday reported 1,160 new coronavirus infections, the highest daily number since the first case was recorded in March, AFP reports. “As of today, the total number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in South Africa is 15,515, with 1,160 new cases identified in the last 24 hour cycle of testing,” said the health ministry in a statement. The Western Cape province, popular with tourists, accounted for nearly 60% of the national numbers. Death tolls fall in UK, Spain and Italy. In a possible glimmer of hope, Sunday has seen lower death tolls reported in the UK, Spain and Italy. The UK’s daily coronavirus death toll was the lowest since lockdown began, with 170 deaths recorded. This should be taken with a pinch of salt: due to hospital reporting delays, the numbers reported on Sundays and Mondays tend to be lower than other days. Meanwhile Spain has recorded its lowest single-day death toll in two months. Italy on Sunday recorded its lowest daily toll, 145, since lockdown was declared. There were 153 deaths registered during the previous 24 hour period. India has extended a nearly two-month-old lockdown by another two weeks with Mumbai, New Delhi, Chennai and other key regions still fighting to control the rising curve of coronavirus infections. The health ministry on Sunday reported a record jump of nearly 5,000 cases of Covid-19 in the past 24 hours, raising the number of confirmed cases to 90,927, with 2,872 deaths. Nigeria seizes British plane flouting travel ban. Nigeria has seized a British plane for defying a travel ban imposed as part of measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, the aviation minister said Sunday.Flair Aviation, the airline involved, was authorised to conduct humanitarian flights but was caught operating commercial flights, Hadi Sirika said on his Twitter account. Qatar makes masks mandatory on pain of prison. Qatar has begun enforcing the world’s toughest penalties of up to three years’ in prison for failing to wear masks in public, in a country with one of the highest coronavirus infection rates. More than 32,000 people have tested positive for Covid-19 in the tiny Gulf country - 1.2 percent of the 2.75 million population - although just 15 people have died. Only the micro-states of San Marino and the Vatican have had higher per-capita infection rates, according to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. Italy’s shops, restaurants and hair salons have been preparing to reopen on Monday, as the government further eases the lockdown. Businesses are being allowed to gradually go back to work as long they can enforce tight sanitary protocols and keep people at least one metre apart. Economic recovery is expected to be difficult, particularly without tourists. Lebanon will gradually reopen its economy beginning on Monday following a four-day shutdown imposed after a rise in coronavirus cases threatened a second wave of the outbreak. The country’s plan to ease restrictions on business was paused last week after a rise in new cases. The country of about 6 million people has recorded 911 infections and 26 deaths. Benin is staging local elections, minus key opposition parties, with authorities pushing ahead despite the coronavirus. The West African nation of 11 million this week lifted a series of restrictions aimed at halting the spread of the virus, which has caused 339 confirmed infections and two deaths in the country. Confirmed Covid-19 cases in Brazil have surpassed the total in Italy, with the country announcing nearly 15,000 new infections on Saturday. This takes Brazil’s total to more than 230,000, the fourth-largest confirmed caseload after the US, Russia and the UK. The city of Wuhan conducted 222,675 nucleic acid tests on 16 May, the local health authority said, nearly doubling from a day earlier. Wuhan kicked off a campaign on 14 May to look for asymptomatic carriers after confirming last weekend its first cluster of Covid-19 infections since its release from lockdown on 8 April. Quebec is considering making masks mandatory, after banning the veil. The Canadian province at the centre of the country’s outbreak is is currently “strongly recommending” that citizens wear masks, but has not made the measure mandatory. Quebec’s public health director stressed “You need to have a good argument for infringing on individual rights for the sake of a collective right.” The growth of new coronavirus cases in Russia is stabilising, a top health official has said, as the daily tally fell under 10,000 for the third time this week. The country has the world’s second highest number of infections at 281,752, topped only by the United States. Madagascar has reported the first death of a patient suffering from the coronavirus, nearly two months after the virus was first detected in the country. The victim was a 57-year-old man with underlying conditions. Madagascar has reported 304 cases.