Easter

Vaccinated faithful throng Jerusalem church for Holy Fire

The faithful gathered at The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, waiting for clergymen to emerge with the Holy Fire from the Edicule, a chamber built on the site where Christians believe Jesus was buried and rose from the dead after being crucified.

Merkel admits failed Easter lockdown plan her 'mistake'

Chancellor Angela Merkel takes responsibility, drops plans for a five-day shutdown in Germany over Easter that prompted confusion and criticism from the public and businesses.

UN adopts resolution urging equitable access to vaccines – latest updates

The coronavirus has killed over 2.5 million people and infected more than 113 million globally. Here are the virus-related developments for February 26:

Banksy's latest art mural appears on England's steepest street

Banksy confirmed the mural, which shows a sneezing woman on his official Instagram account, along with the comment “Aachoo!!”

Germany reopens some shops as parts of Europe ease virus curbs

Larger shops and those in major German cities will open later as part of an attempted phased return to a more normal existence that will also see some students go back to school from May 4.

Andrea Bocelli's lone Easter Sunday concert scores YouTube record

The 25-minute livestreamed "Music for Hope" concert by the Italian tenor reached more than 2.8 million concurrent peak viewers in the largest simultaneous audience for a classical live stream in YouTube history, YouTube said on Wednesday.

Portuguese priest brings Easter to his flock, in a Smart convertible

Father Nuno Westwood carried out his Easter roadshow aboard a convertible Smart microcar speaking into a microphone.

Virus mutes Easter celebrations as US deaths top 20,000

At the climax of Holy Week for the planet's two billion-plus Christians, congregations were shuttered at home to avoid spreading Covid-19. Some US priests and pastors risked arrest by announcing they would hold public services in their churches.

Sri Lanka Catholic church 'forgives' 2019 Easter suicide bombers

The April 21 Easter Sunday bombers had targeted three churches and three luxury hotels, killing at least 279 people and wounded 593 last year.

Europe grapples with Easter sun and how to ease coronavirus curbs

EU countries take preventive measures to bar people from unauthorised trips during the holiday, which coincides with rates of coronavirus infection slowing in many countries.

PM Johnson up and walking in Covid-19 recovery as UK deaths near 9,000

UK PM Boris Johnson is now able to take short walks between periods of rest, as part of the his recovery, which his office said was at an early stage.

Can big city restaurants survive the coronavirus pandemic?

Eateries in major cities like London are turning to takeaway and delivery options to make ends meet, but are still suffering from decimated sales and worries about health risks.