France will postpone the second round of mayoral elections to June 21 following talks between government officials and opposition party leaders, according the French media reports. Prime Minister Édouard Philippe recommended postponing the vote amid the rapidly worsening coronavirus...

The coronavirus outbreak in France is "very worrying" and "deteriorating very fast", the head of the country's health service said Monday. "The number of cases double every three days," Jerome Salomon said on France Inter. "I want our citizens to realise that there are people who are...

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Sunday said he would not rule out closing the nation’s borders or forcing people arriving from abroad to go into self-isolation to help combat a coronavirus outbreak. Asked whether Canada might shut its frontiers to Europe or the United States,...

The EU imposed Sunday restrictions on exports of masks and other protective medical equipment as it seeks to protect its own supplies for the fight against the coronavirus epidemic. Announcing the measure in an online video, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also warned...

 French voters appeared to be holding back from taking part in local elections on Sunday after the government pressed ahead with the vote despite a raft of new measures to curb public gatherings amid a rapid acceleration of the coronavirus. France is set to choose mayors for 35,000...

Italians are cooped up at home by a government decree to combat the spread of coronavirus. They are coping creatively. A trumpeter on a balcony in Sicily blasts out "Imagine." At the same precise moment, a saxophonist plays some jazz rifts through an open apartment window in northern Turin....

France on Saturday drastically stepped up its measures against the spread of the coronavirus, announcing the closure of all non-essential public places including restaurants and cafes from midnight (2300 GMT). "I have decided on the closure until further notice from midnight of places that...

Spain decided Saturday to follow Italy in declaring a nationwide lockdown to slow the accelerating spread of the coronavirus epidemic, Spanish media reported. Spain's decision came as European countries took ever more severe, though widely varying, measures to reduce contact between their...

Following a French government directive banning gatherings of more than 100 people in a bid to contain the coronavirus’s spread, the Louvre Museum and Versailles Palace were set to close on Friday. The Louvre in Paris, the world's most visited museum, said Friday that it was closing "until...

The European Union's new deal with Brexit Britain envisages a tight trade and security relationship, according to a draft seen by Reuters Friday, despite London saying it is seeking looser ties. Britain left the E.U. in January and is in negotiations with the bloc over a new partnership to...

Greece on Friday prepared to swear in the first woman president in its history as the country grapples with over a hundred coronavirus cases. Ekaterini Sakellaropoulou, a 63-year-old senior judge, will become the new Greek head of state for a five-year term. She will take her oath in...

Britain likely has between 5,000 and 10,000 people infected with coronavirus, the government’s chief scientific adviser said on Thursday, as Prime Minister Boris Johnson stepped up the response to the outbreak. Stock markets tumbled across the world, with Britain’s FTSE 100 down 10.9%, its...

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau went into isolation Thursday while his wife awaits results of a coronavirus test. Sophie Gregoire Trudeau returned late Wednesday from a speaking event in the U.K. and began to exhibit mild flu-like symptoms. She is also self-isolating at home...

Italy's death toll passed 1,000 Thursday, with 189 new fatalities taking its toll in just over two weeks to 1,016, second behind China, official data showed. The number of deaths was just below Italy's single-day record of 196 reported Wednesday. The number of daily infections rose to 2,651...

Italian police were Wednesday hunting for 11 prisoners who escaped in the aftermath of jail riots sparked by fears over coronavirus, as authorities began to test inmates and distribute face masks. Those still on the run were part of a group of 72 inmates who escaped Monday from a prison in...

French prosecutors on Tuesday demanded that ex-prime minister Francois Fillon serve two years in jail, with another three suspended, for embezzlement over his wife’s suspected fake job as his parliamentary assistant.  The allegations that Fillon, a fiscal conservative, paid his wife...

At least one person has died in an explosion at a chemical plant in the Barcelona neighborhood of La Verneda, local emergency services said in a tweet on Tuesday. The emergency services said they were coordinating with the fire service and the company to determine what type of products have...

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday opened the door to constitutional changes that would allow him to remain in power until 2036 if he chose to do so, despite saying he had misgivings about the legal amendments. Putin, who in January unveiled a major shake-up of Russian politics and...

Greece has violated international and European law by not allowing people to seek asylum, a global human rights group said on Tuesday. “Greece’s decision to detain more than 450 people on a naval vessel and refuse to allow them to lodge asylum claims flagrantly violates international and...

Russia's parliament is on Tuesday expected to back President Vladimir Putin's controversial constitutional amendments that the Kremlin leader hopes will secure the country's political future for decades to come. In a key second reading parliament's lower house, the State Duma, is set to...