Canadian national Édith Blais and her Italian partner Luca Tacchetto are found alive in Mali after escaping from their captors. The pair were abducted in Burkina Faso on December 15, 2018. (CBC)
Walmart says all of its stores will reduce their hours to 6:00 a.m. until 11:00 p.m. local time until further notice in response to the pandemic. Several other chains have already done so. (CNN)
NHS England reports 10 more deaths from the coronavirus, doubling the number of deaths in the UK to 21. All patients were aged over 70 and had underlying health conditions. (Daily Standard)
Italy's Ministry of Health reports 250 more deaths from COVID-19, the highest number of deaths in a single 24-hour period in the country to date. The Mayor of BergamoGiorgio Gori says churches are now being used to store dead bodies as the city's morgues are full. (Sky News)
Iran reports 1,365 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 97 more deaths, the highest number of deaths in a single 24-hour period in the country to date, bringing the total to 12,729 confirmed cases and 611 deaths. (Gulf News)
Syria's government closes all schools and cancels public events until April 2, to prevent the spread of the virus. Syrian Minister Imad al-Azab rejects claims the government is covering up cases and says the new measures are "precautionary". (Reuters)
New ZealandPrime MinisterJacinda Ardern imposes a 14 day mandatory quarantine to everyone arriving in New Zealand, including diplomats, tourists and returning citizens, but excluding those coming in from Pacific Island nations, and bans all cruise ships from entering the nation until at least June 30. (News.com.au)