World News Roundup: Spain's coronavirus death toll slows; Putin says coronavirus crisis under full control and more

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Spain's coronavirus death toll slows, with the lowest increase in about a month

Spain's death toll from the new coronavirus outbreak rose by 410 on Sunday, down from 565 on Saturday, the Health Ministry said, the lowest daily increase in about a month in one of the world's hardest hit countries. The total number of deaths reached 20,453.

UK not thinking of easing virus lockdown measures yet: minister

Britain is not considering lifting the lockdown enacted almost four weeks ago to control the coronavirus outbreak given "deeply worrying" increases in the death toll, a senior minister said on Sunday. Britain is at or near the peak of a health crisis in which more than 15,000 people have died - the fifth highest national death toll of a pandemic linked to at least 150,000 deaths worldwide.

Iran will give a decisive response to any "mistake" by the U.S. in the Gulf: Revolutionary Guards navy

Iran will give a decisive response to any mistake by the United States in the Gulf, the Revolutionary Guards navy said in a statement published on the Guards' news site Sepah News. The U.S. military said on Wednesday that 11 vessels from the Revolutionary Guards navy had come dangerously close to U.S. Navy and Coast Guard ships in the Gulf, calling the moves "dangerous and provocative".

Putin says coronavirus crisis under full control despite a record rise in cases

President Vladimir Putin said that Russian authorities had the coronavirus crisis under full control and that everything would work out with God's help, even as the country on Sunday registered a record daily rise in cases of the new virus. Russia on Sunday reported 6,060 new cases in the previous 24 hours, bringing its nationwide tally to 42,853, though the official death toll of 361 remains relatively low compared with other countries with a similar number of cases.

Recovery from coronavirus must be just and equitable, pope says

Pope Francis called on Sunday for an all-embracing vision of the world after the Covid-19 crisis, saying moving on without global solidarity or excluding sectors of society from the recovery would result in "an even worse virus". The pope left the Vatican for the first time in more than a month to say Mass in an almost empty church a few blocks away to mark Divine Mercy Sunday.

Delivery of protective healthcare equipment to the UK delayed

A delivery of protective equipment for British health workers that was due on Sunday from Turkey has been delayed, a British government official said, as medics on the frontline of the coronavirus outbreak increasingly report shortages of gear. Ministers had on Saturday highlighted an 84-tonne consignment that was due to arrive from Turkey containing personal protective equipment (PPE), including 400,000 protective gowns.

Arrests show Beijing sees Hong Kong crackdown as a priority: activist

Suppressing Hong Kong's democracy movement is a priority for China, even in the midst of the coronavirus crisis, a top pro-democracy leader said on Sunday, a day after police arrested him and 14 others in a surprise crackdown. The United States and others criticized the arrest of the 15 on charges of organizing and participating in anti-government protests last year, the biggest crackdown on the pro-democracy movement since the outbreak of the protests almost a year ago.

Dutch report lowest daily corona death rate in over 3 weeks

The number of deaths caused by the novel coronavirus in the Netherlands has risen by 83, Dutch health authorities said on Sunday, which was the smallest reported daily increase since March 26. The total number of deaths among people known to have been infected with the coronavirus increased to 3,684, while the number of confirmed infections rose by 1,066 to 32,655.

China's new coronavirus cases fall, eyes on northeastern province

China on Sunday reported 16 new coronavirus cases but no deaths while authorities remained on guard against a major resurgence and monitored the spread of cases in Heilongjiang province. The National Health Commission on Sunday also issued a notice asking for improvement in testing capacity and quality nationwide.

Belarusians flock to churches for Easter, defy stay home calls

Thousands of Belarusians converged on churches across the country on Sunday to celebrate Easter, ignoring calls from health authorities and church leaders to stay at home to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Priests had planned to conduct services in empty churches over the Easter weekend observed by Orthodox Christians in many eastern European countries.