Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs. Jerusalem Friday prayers sees smaller crowds amid partial coronavirus lockdown

Palestinian worshippers scuffled with Israeli police in East Jerusalem on Friday as crowds headed to Al-Aqsa Mosque to pray, amid a partial lockdown imposed to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Police in riot gear and wearing face masks put barricades up outside Damascus Gate and other entrances to the walled Old City ahead of Friday noon prayers, and checked identity papers to limit the numbers attending. Ventilator rush: UK says new ones will be approved next week

Britain said on Friday that engineering companies had come up with an emergency ventilator prototype to fight the coronavirus outbreak, which should be approved for use in hospitals by the end of next week. Britain, where 144 people with COVID-19 have died so far, has a shortage of ventilators which can save the lives of those who develop complications after contracting the virus. The UK's existing stock of around 5,000-8,000 ventilators is inadequate. Coronavirus deaths in Italy overtake China as economic damage mounts

The world's richest nations poured unprecedented aid into the global economy on Thursday as coronavirus cases ballooned in the new epicentre Europe, with the number of deaths in Italy outstripping those in mainland China, where the virus originated. With over 242,000 infections and nearly 10,000 deaths, the epidemic has stunned the world and drawn comparisons with painful periods such as World War Two, the 2008 financial crisis and the 1918 Spanish flu. Split by war, Cyprus joins in prayer over coronavirus

Religious leaders of Cyprus said on Friday they were joined in prayer to fight coronavirus in a rare display of unity on the war-divided island. Leaders of the main religious groups, including the head of the Christian Greek Orthodox Church of Cyprus, the Mufti of Cyprus, the Armenian and the Maronite Churches, said they had "joined their voices and prayers" to fight the pandemic. China's new imported coronavirus cases at record; no domestic transfers for second day

China's imported coronavirus cases have risen to a record 228, data showed on Friday, as infected travellers spread to ever more provinces, adding pressure on authorities to toughen entry rules and health protocols. For a second day in a row, China found no domestically transmitted cases of the virus that emerged in its central province of Hubei late last year, according to new daily figures registered on Thursday. Exclusive: Trump cancels G7 at Camp David over coronavirus, to hold video-conference instead

President Donald Trump will cancel an in-person meeting of G7 leaders at Camp David in June because of the coronavirus and will hold a video-conference instead, the White House said on Thursday. The decision comes as nations around the world seal their borders and ban travel to stop the virus' spread. From plague to coronavirus, French brotherhood keeps burying the dead

In a cemetery in northern France, members of the Charitable Brotherhood of Saint-Eloi de Bethune carried an urn towards a family tomb, each wearing a face mask that stood out against a uniform of black tails, white gloves and bicorne hat. Behind them followed the deceased woman's two sons, their partners, and a grand-daughter, their numbers restricted by a ban in France on large burial gatherings with the country under virtual lockdown as the coronavirus sweeps through Europe. War-ravaged Syria takes new steps against coronavirus, says no recorded cases yet

Syria, already shattered by nine years of war, has banned entry for foreigners arriving from many countries hit by the coronavirus as part of widening measures to combat the epidemic. Although the government says it has yet to document any infections, Syria is seen at high risk from the virus. United States wants further G7 video calls in April, May: Germany

The United States wants to have further video calls with the Group of Seven nations in April and May, a spokesman for the German government said on Friday, as the world battles a coronavirus outbreak. The White House on Thursday said U.S. President Donald Trump will cancel an in-person meeting of G7 leaders at Camp David in June because of the coronavirus and will hold a video conference instead. Khamenei lauds Iranians' 'dazzling' sacrifices to fight virus

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in a speech on state television for the Persian New Year, praised Iranians for their "dazzling" sacrifices in fighting the coronavirus outbreak in the worst-hit country in the Middle East. Khamenei, Iran's highest authority, said it had been a tumultuous year for Iranians who have endured U.S. sanctions, floods, and the coronavirus, which has killed more than 1,400 people in Iran and infected nearly 20,000.