Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs. England tiptoes out of full lockdown as economy plunges

England tentatively began easing its coronavirus lockdown on Wednesday, with some people who cannot do their jobs at home urged to return to work, as stark economic data showed the disastrous impact of the pandemic. The worst-hit country in Europe with more than 40,000 deaths from COVID-19 according to official data, Britain has been in extensive lockdown since March 23. As of Wednesday morning, people in manufacturing and certain other sectors were being asked to return to work if they could. Maternity ward massacre shakes Afghanistan and its peace process

After struggling to get pregnant for years, Zainab, 27, gave birth to a baby boy on Tuesday morning at a small hospital in the southwestern corner of Kabul. She was overjoyed and named the boy Omid, meaning 'hope' in Dari. At around 10 a.m. (0530 GMT), an hour before she and her family were set to return home to neighbouring Bamiyan province a three-hour drive away, three gunmen disguised as police burst into the hospital's maternity ward and started shooting. In Israel, Pompeo discusses West Bank and coronavirus with Netanyahu

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo spoke on Wednesday of the complexities of Israel's planned de facto annexation of the occupied West Bank, saying after talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the move must be done in accordance with a U.S. peace plan. During a one-day visit to Israel, Pompeo took another swipe at China over what he said was Beijing's lack of transparency about the outbreak of the new coronavirus in Wuhan late last year. China rejects allegations by U.S. President Donald Trump's administration that it withheld information about the virus. Yemen's PM says the key to restoring peace is to end the armed militia rebellion

Yemen's Prime Minister Maeen Abdulmalik said on Wednesday the key to restoring peace in Yemen is to restore the country and its institutions and to end the armed militia rebellion, according to a statement from his office. The separatist Southern Transitional Council (STC) on April 25 declared self-rule in Aden and other southern regions, threatening to renew a conflict with the Saudi-backed government in Yemen's multifaceted war. 'This virus may never go away,' WHO says

The coronavirus that causes COVID-19 could become endemic like HIV, the World Health Organization said on Wednesday, warning against any attempt to predict how long it would keep circulating and calling for a "massive effort" to counter it. "It is important to put this on the table: this virus may become just another endemic virus in our communities, and this virus may never go away," WHO emergencies expert Mike Ryan told an online briefing. Ontario redeploys educators into nursing homes, as just one facility records 56 deaths

The Canadian province of Ontario is allowing its education staff, including teachers and custodians, to voluntarily redeploy into the province's long-term care homes, the provincial government said on Wednesday, as the coronavirus outbreak at just one Toronto-area home alone has killed dozens. Coronavirus deaths in long-term care nursing homes account for 815 of 1,765 total deaths in Ontario, Canada's most populous province, according to provincial data released on Wednesday. South Africa to ease coronavirus restrictions cautiously: Ramaphosa

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Wednesday he aimed to further ease restrictions imposed to curb the new coronavirus, but places with the most infections likely would remain into June on "alert level 4" of a five-level system. Ramaphosa imposed one of the world's toughest lockdowns in late March, with restrictions only easing slightly from May 1 when the country moved to a five-level alert system where five represents the most restrictions. U.S. says Cuba is not cooperating fully on counterterrorism

The Trump administration said on Wednesday it had put Cuba back on the list of countries that do not cooperate fully with its efforts to counter terrorism, in a further escalation of U.S. tensions with the Communist-run country. The State Department justified the move by Cuba's refusal of Colombia's request to extradite leaders of the ELN rebel group after it claimed responsibility for an attack at a Bogota police academy in January 2019 that killed 22. Canada, U.S. are likely to extend travel restrictions until June 21: sources

Canada and the United States appear likely to extend a ban on non-essential travel until June 21 amid the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic, sources in both nations said on Wednesday. The two neighbors had agreed on April 18 to extend border restrictions until May 21 as cases of the disease continue to rise in both nations. Canada is now pressing for the measures to remain for another month. Attacks deal Trump's long-shot Afghan peace push a fresh blow

U.S. President Donald Trump's stalled plans to bring peace to Afghanistan have suffered a new setback with a decision by Kabul to resume offensive operations against the Taliban following two attacks on Tuesday that killed scores of Afghans. Washington cast the attacks - one at a Kabul hospital where gunmen killed at least 24 people, including two newborns, and a suicide bombing at a funeral in Nangarhar province that killed at least 32 people - as a moment for the Afghan government and the Taliban to unite to combat such violence and to negotiate a peace deal.