Europe

MOSCOW, April 27./TASS/: The decision on extending coronavirus self-isolation rules will be passed based on the current pace of the spread of coronavirus, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists on Monday.

"Evidently, a decision has to be made based on the current trend or on some short-term forecasts. Middle-term or the long-term forecasts are hardly possible. Therefore, giving some timeframes now would be like a shot in the dark," the Kremlin spokesman said when asked for how long the self-isolation regime for Russian citizens could be extended.

27 April 2020; AFP: French police have seized 140,000 face masks intended for the black market in a record haul since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

It is the largest seizure since the French government banned the resale of protective masks to prioritise their distribution to health workers in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

Two individuals were arrested while they were unloading boxes in Saint-Denis, just north of Paris, a police source said on Sunday.

OSLO (Reuters) - Norwegian Air (NWC.OL) could run out of cash by mid-May unless its proposed financial rescue plan is approved by creditors and shareholders, the budget carrier warned on Monday.

If bondholders, leasing companies and shareholders give a green light, the plan may help Norwegian survive the coronavirus outbreak, which has grounded 95% of its fleet, leaving just seven aircraft in operation.

LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices fell on Monday on concerns about scarce storage capacity and global economic doldrums from the coronavirus pandemic.

U.S. oil futures led losses, falling by more than $2 a barrel on fears that storage at Cushing, Oklahoma, could reach full capacity soon.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate CLc1 June futures fell $2.86, or 16.88%, to $14.08 a barrel by 1100 GMT.

Brent crude LCOc1 was down 83 cents, or 3.9%, at $20.61 a barrel. The June Brent contract expires on Thursday.

MUNICH (Reuters) - The German government should support Lufthansa (LHAG.DE) as it tackles the coronavirus crisis but the flagship carrier should not be nationalised, Bavarian State Premier Markus Soeder said on Monday.

“Lufthansa should not be nationalised,” said Soeder - head of the Christian Social Union (CSU), sister party to Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrats (CDU).

Soeder added that the government should be a silent partner in the airline rather than a shareholder and should exit soon after the crisis.

MADRID (Reuters) - The number of daily fatalities from the novel coronavirus reported in Spain rose on Monday to 331, up from 288 the previous day, the health ministry said.

The overall death toll caused by the disease rose to 23,521 from 23,190 the day before. The total number of diagnosed cases rose to 209,465 from 207,634 the day before.

LONDON, April 26 (Xinhua) -- In the six weeks up to April 19, officers across London had made 4,093 arrests for domestic abuse offences -- nearly 100 a day on average -- and domestic abuse calls have risen by around a third in the last six weeks, the Metropolitan Police (the Met) has revealed.

Charges and cautions have increased by 24 percent since March 9, when people with COVID-19 symptoms were asked to self-isolate, compared to last year, said Commander Sue Williams, the Met's lead for safeguarding.

LISBON, April 26 (Xinhua) -- The European Travel Commission (ETC), a European tourism organization, has said that the European tourism sector needs 375 billion euros to recover from the crisis generated by the COVID-19 pandemic and to restore operations, Portuguese Lusa News Agency reported on Sunday.

BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) — The holy month of Ramadan is underway, and the Central Jamia Mosque Ghamkol Sharif in Birmingham should be full of worshippers. But this year, the main arrivals are the dead.

While the mosque in the central England city has been closed in response to the coronavirus pandemic, its parking lot has been transformed into a temporary morgue with room for 150 bodies.

LONDON, April 27 (NNN-AGENCIES) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson returns to work on Monday more than three weeks after being hospitalised for the coronavirus and spending three days in intensive care.

Johnson, one of the highest-profile people to have contracted the virus, returned to 10 Downing Street on Sunday evening and will chair a meeting on Monday morning of the coronavirus “war cabinet”, his colleagues confirmed.