TOP HEADLINES

• Travelers arriving to the UK will have to self-isolate for 14 days from 8 June, with a fine of $1,200 should they fail to comply.

• A Lutheran church in Berlin opened its doors to Muslims worshipers who couldn't fit in mosques because of social distancing measures.

• The UK government's chief adviser, Dominic Cummings, is facing calls to resign after breaking quarantine to meet his parents.

• Mayors across Italy worry that, as Italians go back to normal life and habits, a lack of social distancing will cause a second spike in cases. 

• A new study in The Lancet has found that anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine increases the chances of dying in COVID-19 patients.

• More than 10,000 people in the UK will participate to the second phase of clinical trials for a possible COVID-19 vaccine created by Oxford University.

• Poland ended compulsory quarantine for those crossing the borders into the country for business, professional, economic reasons or for receiving an education.

• South America is the new pandemic epicenter, according to the World Health Organization.

• Brazil has now the second highest number of infections worldwide, after a spike in new cases caused the country to overtake Russia.

• As the Eid holiday begins in the Muslim world to mark the end of Ramadan, Saudi Arabia has imposed a total curfew despite having previously eased lockdown measures.

ACROSS EUROPE

By Nawied Jabarkhyl in London

There's growing pressure on UK prime minister Boris Johnson's top adviser and aide Dominic Cummings to resign after it emerged he broke lockdown rules to travel almost 420 kilometres from his home in London, while he had coronavirus symptoms.

Cummings and his wife – who also should have been self-isolating – traveled to his parents' home in Durham, in the north of England. Opposition lawmakers are demanding an explanation for the travel, with a source close to the couple claiming they needed help with childcare. If that's the case, it begs the question why they would need to travel several hundred miles for that, particularly when the official advice is to stay at home – advice Cummings has been involved in formulating.

Cummings has risen to become a major player in British politics, although his role is mired in controversy, given that he isn't elected. More broadly, this is another major blow for the UK government and its handling of the pandemic, especially given his close links to the prime minister.

Elsewhere, people arriving in the UK from 8 June must self-isolate for 14 days or risk a $1,200 fine. Ministers say it is to help slow the spread of coronavirus, but critics say it should have been introduced months ago in order to be effective.

By Natalie Carney in Munich

Demonstrations are again scheduled for Saturday in some major German cities, including Munich and Berlin. Protesters are arguing against the need for the restrictive COVID-19 measures imposed by the government, claiming they evoke panic and infringe people's fundamental rights.

However, concerns of violence and social distancing violations have led authorities to ban this weekend's demonstrations in the western city of Stuttgart, which has previously attracted some of the largest anti-coronavirus protests in the country.

Authorities have also been concerned about the growing presence of far-right activists and conspiracy theorists in the protests. The demonstration in Stuttgart was set to feature Germany's far-right Alternative For Deutschland leader Alice Weidel.

FROM OUR GLOBAL COLLEAGUES

• Latin America named virus epicenter

• Living under the COVID-19 cloud: The Asian-American community

• U.S. to exempt foreign athletes from entry bans

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