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Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez says a **state ceremony will be held on July 16 **to honor more than 27,000 people who have died in the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Danish government is urging protesters who took part in a large racial justice demonstration earlier this month to get tested after a person in the crowd tested positive for the coronavirus.
UK's health minister hailed the use of a steroid called dexamethasone for treating coronavirus patients as the** best news so far. **During a trial, the drug reduced death rates by around a third among the most severely ill patients.
The World Health Organization will update guidelines on treating people infected with the virus to reflect results of the dexamethasone trial.
Germany's smartphone app to help trace infections has been downloaded 6.5 million times in the first 24 hours since its launch, announced the CEO of software company SAP said. Health Minister Jens Spahn said that it was a** "strong start."**
Israeli researchers say they have invented a reusable face mask that can kill the coronavirus with heat by drawing power from a mobile phone charger.
Turkey has made the wearing of face masks mandatory in five more provinces , following an uptick in COVID-19 cases.
Russia, Wednesday, reported 7,843 new cases of the virus, its** lowest daily caseload registered since April 30.**
Chinese and Norwegian authorities have concluded that Norwegian salmon was likely not the source of the virus that was found at cutting boards in a Beijing food market.
After the cancellation of hundreds of Pride parades due to the pandemic, national Pride networks have set up a new digital Global Pride day on June 27 to unite people all over the world in celebration and support of the LGBTI+ community.

Ira Spitzer in Berlin

Around 6 million smartphone owners downloaded Germany's new coronavirus tracking app on the day it became available, according to data from the country's Health Ministry.

The voluntary app uses bluetooth to track when users come closer than about two meters over a longer period of time. If someone tests positive and shares this in the app, it will subsequently notify other people that they have been near an infected person.

Police in Berlin say they recorded around 5,000 violations of coronavirus restrictions from March 14 to June 11. Leading to 1,690 criminal charges being filed under the Infection Protection Act, including offenses such as prohibited openings of shops, restaurants, bars, or larger unauthorized events and parties. There were also 3,123 'administrative offenses', such as violating social distancing rules.

Toni Waterman in Brussels

Brussels

The European Commission will lay out its coronavirus vaccines strategy today. The plan includes a $2.7 billion pot to fund pre-orders of any potential vaccine and added flexibility to fast-track clinical trials.

Expect lots of focus on a unified and equitable approach. But behind the scenes, member states are already wheeling and dealing to secure supplies. Germany, France, Italy and the Netherlands struck a deal with AstraZeneca for up to 400 million doses of a promising vaccine which is still in the clinical trial stage.

Any member state can join the vaccine alliance, but some, like Belgian Health Minister Maggie De Block, have criticized the deal, saying it weakens the union by splitting up efforts.

Belgium

More than 400 people in Belgium have volunteered to take part in a coronavirus vaccine trial set to begin in July. The shot is being developed by Belgian pharmaceutical firm Janssen Pharmaceutica, which is owned by U.S. corporation Johnson Johnson.

The first phase of trial, which will test the vaccine's safety and the immune system's response to it, was meant to begin in September, but was brought forward by two months.

While take up has been strong, many more volunteers are needed. The company has called for over a 1,000 volunteers, each of whom will be paid $1,700 for their participation.

00:10

Andrew Wilson in London

The Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, can expect a rough ride at Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons today, particularly over his dramatic U-turn in the face of a campaign by a 22-year-old footballer, Marcus Rashford, to continue free school meals over the summer holidays.

The Manchester United forward has told the BBC that having secured vouchers for 1.3 million children he wants to do more to help those in need.

I don't want this to be the end of it

Marcus Rashford, Footballer

It's not only the Opposition and footballers Johnson needs to worry about, as he meets, for the first time this year, with the powerful 1922 committee of Conservative backbenchers. Johnson can expect a grilling on the school meals u-turn, the 2-meter social distancing rule, the school reopening debacle and even the actions of his advisor Dominic Cummings.

In a welcome distraction, the English Premier League starts up again this evening, with Aston Villa playing Sheffield United, followed by Manchester City against Arsenal. While the stadiums will be empty, the television viewing figures are likely to be impressive.

Isobel Ewing in Budapest

The Hungarian government has formed an "epidemiological deployment unit" made up of military staff, whose job it is to maintain defence capabilities against the coronavirus.

Tibor Lakatos, the head of the government's coronavirus task-force, said the unit was needed to "prepare for further attacks of the epidemic" and continue to "maintain our effective defense capabilities."

The temporary unit will be able to react quickly and immediately if a large number of new coronavirus cases are registered somewhere in a short period of time, Lakatos said.

In case of a new outbreak the team will have the power to impose immediate restrictive measures, such as a visit ban, curfew or site closure, order the use of personal protective equipment, reassign medical personnel, and conduct disinfecting.

FROM OUR GLOBAL COLLEAGUES:

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Beijing shuts schools, students return to virtual classes as COVID-19 strikes again

CGTN America:

Virus widening the gulf between Americans

CGTN Africa:

Nearly 10% of Guinea-Bissau health workers infected with COVID-19

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