Duty Editor: Ben Sheppard Contact: ben.sheppard@afp.com -- TOP STORIES -- + Europe prepares to ease coronavirus lockdown + British PM announces phased restart plan + Seoul closes bars, clubs on fears of second wave + Police chase protesters through Hong Kong malls + European football leagues move at different speeds Health-virus,WRAP PARIS Millions of Europeans prepare for a return to partial normality, a day before officials relax some of world's strictest coronavirus lockdown measures. 950 words 2000 GMT by Joseph Boyle with AFP bureaus. Picture. Graphic. Video. Videographic Health-virus-Britain,4thlead LONDON British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announces a phased plan to ease a nationwide coronavirus lockdown, with schools, shops and restaurants to begin opening from June 1, as long as infection rates stay low. 650 words 1930 GMT by Alice Ritchie. Picture. Video Health-virus-SKorea,2ndlead SEOUL South Korea's capital orders the closure of all clubs and bars after a burst of new cases sparks fears of a second coronavirus wave, and President Moon Jae-in urges the public to remain vigilant. 550 words moved. Picture. Video HongKong-China-politics-unrest,2ndlead HONG KONG Riot police chase protesters through Hong Kong's shopping malls and streets as democracy activists launch Mother's Day flash mob rallies calling for independence and for the city's unpopular leader to resign. 500 words 2100 GMT. Picture. Video Health-virus-fbl,FOCUS PARIS As European leagues prepare to return from the enforced coronavirus break, screening tests are revealing cases in various championships, although, as yet, not calling into question plans to resume playing. 700 words moved -- AMERICAS -- Health-virus-US-economy WASHINGTON Two top US economic advisers on defend the need for an expeditious reopening of the economy even as the coronavirus reaches into the White House despite the extraordinary precautions taken there. 650 words 2000 GMT by Brian Knowlton. File picture Health-virus-US-children NEW YORK New York's Mayor Bill de Blasio voices "tremendous concern" over an uptick in cases of a pediatric syndrome that scientists suspect could be linked to COVID-19, which has left at least three people dead statewide. 600 words moved by Maggy Donaldson. File picture -- EUROPE -- Health-virus-Germany,lead BERLIN Germany's coronavirus spread appears to be picking up speed again, official data shows, just days after Chancellor Angela Merkel said the country could gradually return to normal. 550 words 1930 GMT by Yacine Le Forestier. Picture. Also moved: Health-virus-Germany-leisure-religion-church,VIDEOESSAY Health-virus-confinement-Europe,FACTS PARIS Tentatively parts of Europe are emerging from lockdown, with France and Belgium joining the list on Monday of countries beginning the first phase of easing measures, amid fears of a second wave. 850 words moved Graphic. Picture Health-virus-Poland-vote WARSAW Poland's election day proves to be one for the history books as polling stations remain closed and turnout will clock in at zero due to a political crisis set off by the coronavirus pandemic. 650 words moved by Anna Maria Jakubek. Pictures. File picture Health-virus-fashion-masks,FOCUS PARIS Face masks have gone from being a curiosity to a fashion's latest object of desire -- and one which could be with us for a while. 700 words moved by Fiachra Gibbons and Olga Nedbaeva. Video by Natalie Handel. Picture. File picture Health-virus-Sweden-elderly,FOCUS STOCKHOLM Sweden, whose softer approach to the coronavirus has garnered international attention, admits it has failed to adequately protect the elderly, with around half of COVID-19 deaths occurring among nursing home residents. 750 words moved by Pia Ohlin. Picture. Video Health-virus-Greece-tourism-Airbnb,FOCUS ATHENS At the foot of the Acropolis hill, in the touristic Koukaki district, the coronavirus lockdown has silenced the sound of Airbnb customers' wheeled luggage. The tourist industry in Athens, as in many other European capitals, has come to a halt, with airplanes grounded and restaurants, museums and archeological monuments all closed. 750 words moved by Alexandros Kottis with AFP bureaus. Picture. Video -- AFRICA -- Niger-conflict,lead NIAMEY Motorbike-riding bandits kill 20 villagers in a string of attacks in Niger's western region of Tillaberi, the latest in a series of attacks in an area wracked by violence blamed on jihadists in recent years. 400 words moved Health-virus-Niger-migration-EU,FOCUS NIAMEY Many Africans are managing to evade coronavirus lockdown barriers in Niger, the Sahel's migrant crossroads, as they press on with their perilous desert trek to the Mediterranean Sea and ultimately Europe. 900 words moved by Boureima Hama. Pictures -- MIDDLE EAST -- Health-virus-Iran-economy,FOCUS TEHRAN While many residents of Iran's capital are taking advantage of loosened COVID-19 controls, some worry about a new spike in infections in what remains the Middle East's deadliest virus epicentre. 750 words moved by Ahmad Parhizi. Picture. Video Libya-conflict,WRAP TRIPOLI War-torn Libya's Government of National Accord says at least four civilians, including a child, were killed when rockets rained down on the capital Tripoli and damaged its only working airport. 700 words moved by Rim Taher. Picture. Video Israel-Palestinians-conflict-prisoners,FOCUS JERUSALEM Long-stalled talks on a prisoner swap between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas could be given fresh impetus by the coronavirus pandemic and the formation of a new Israeli government, analysts say. 700 words moved by Claire Gounon and Adel Zaanoun in Gaza Iraq-demonstration-politics BAGHDAD Modest anti-government rallies resume in some Iraqi cities, where protesters clash with security forces, ending months of relative calm just days after Prime Minister Mustafa Kadhemi's government came to power. 470 words moved. Picture. Video Health-virus-Algeria-protests,ANALYSIS ALGIERS The Algerian regime is exploiting the coronavirus pandemic to defeat a protest movement that has shaken it to its core over the past year, analysts say. 750 words moved by Philippe Agret. File picture -- ASIA -- Health-virus-India-transport,lead NEW DELHI One of the world's largest train networks will "gradually" restart operations as India eases its coronavirus lockdown, as the number of cases past 60,000 with more than 2,000 deaths. 450 words 2000 GMT by Glenda Kwek. Picture India-China-diplomacy-military,lead KOLKATA, West Bengal Several Indian and Chinese soldiers are injured in a high-altitude cross-border clash involving fistfights and stone-throwing at a remote but strategically important mountain pass near Tibet, the Indian Army says. 300 words moved Maldives-India-virus-health,lead KOCHI, Kerala, India A navy ship carrying evacuees from the Maldives arrives in India as part of a massive effort to bring home hundreds of thousands of nationals stranded overseas due to the coronavirus lockdown. 400 words moved. Picture afp