TOP HEADLINES

· It is "very likely" COVID-19 began spreading after the virus was transmitted to humans via at least two animal species, according to a long-awaited report from the World Health Organization. Whereas the study says it was "extremely unlikely" the origin was a leak from a laboratory.

· Sweden's health agency has asked the government to postpone the planned April 11 easing of some COVID-19 restrictions by nearly a month. The country has registered 16,427 new COVID-19 cases since Friday – up from 14,063 during the same period last week, while there has been a 9 percent increase in intensive care patients with the virus.

· The wearing of face masks outdoors is now obligatory across Spain, including on beaches, at swimming pools and even where social distancing is not an issue. The regulation had been in force in the Catalonia region since last July.

· Vienna plans to extend an Easter coronavirus lockdown, due to last from April 1-6, by five days until the following Sunday, Austria's health minister has said. The country is also in talks with Russia to buy 1 million doses of its Sputnik V vaccine, which has yet to be approved by the European Medicines Agency.

· New COVID-19 cases in the Netherlands rose for a seventh consecutive week, despite the country's lockdown. New cases climbed by 13 percent to 51,866, the National Institute for Health said in its weekly review, the highest level since early January.

· Poland will increase vaccine access in April to those in their 40s and 50s, as the government aims to inoculate all citizens who want a jab by the end of August. The country has reported a surge in new coronavirus cases in the past weeks, with many hospitals running out of beds and ventilators.

· Berlin has paused giving AstraZeneca shots to patients aged under 60. The move follows reports of rare but serious blood clots, known as cerebral sinus vein thrombosis, bleeding and in some cases death after vaccination, mainly in young women.

· Spain's coronavirus infection rate has risen to 149 cases per 100,000 people in the past few days. A further 15,500 infections were added to the tally, according to health ministry data, as a gradual uptick in contagion from mid-March lows gathered pace.

· Some 60 million doses of the Novavax vaccine will now be produced and packaged in northeast England, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said after agreeing a deal with GlaxoSmithKline. The company said it hoped the 'fill and finish' process can begin as early as May.

· Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has announced tighter COVID-19 restrictions. There will be a full weekend lockdown during the month of Ramadan and restaurants will become takeaway-only. The existing nationwide 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew is also to continue, Erdogan added.

ACROSS EUROPE

Ryan Thompson in Frankfurt

Vaccination centers in Berlin will no longer use the AstraZeneca vaccine for men and women aged under 60, following reports of some patients suffering blood clots in the brain.

"This step is necessary because in the meantime further cerebral venous thromboses have become known in women in Germany," a spokeswoman for the Charite and Vivantes hospital groups said.

The decision largely affects hospital staff and employees who, together with people aged over 80, are the only ones eligible for coronavirus vaccines in Germany. It's unclear if similar decisions will be taken by the country's other states.

Meanwhile, German holidaymakers face coronavirus tests and possible quarantine after Chancellor Angela Merkel approved stricter border measures following a meeting with federal leaders. Travel agents in the country estimate more than 16,000 citizens who have traveled to the Spanish island of Mallorca for the Easter holidays could be caught out by the new rules that came after many ignored government calls not to travel unless for essential reasons.

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Nawied Jabarkhyl in London

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has joined world leaders in calling for a new treaty to tackle future pandemics.

Along with France's President Emmanuel Macron and Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel, Johnson said the world needed to work together to tackle diseases like COVID-19 and warned another pandemic was a matter of "not if, but when."

Elsewhere, Britons are being urged to exercise caution as the relaxation of lockdown rules coincides with warmer weather. In England, up to six people can now meet outdoors. Temperatures in London are forecast to hit 23 degrees Celsius on Tuesday.

Penelope Liersch in Budapest

A chief infections physician has told local media that "by no means" can COVID-19 restrictions in Hungary be eased yet. The official said herd immunity would need 6 million to 7 million people to be vaccinated – currently more than 1.9 million have had at least one jab dose.

Up until the weekend, Hungarian officials had spoken about reopening the country gradually once 2.5 million people had been vaccinated. However, the government appears to be rowing back following record high coronavirus infections and deaths. It's now understood the benchmark may become closer to 5 million people, or half the population.

Another 250,000 doses of the Russian vaccine Sputnik V are due to arrive in Hungary tonight. It comes as teachers and school staff are urged to sign up for their vaccinations, which begin on Thursday. There was hope vaccinating staff would mean schools could open on April 19 but there's now concern those who have received a jab will not actually be protected by the vaccines until early May.

Ross Cullen in Paris

President Emmanuel Macron is expected to address the public at some point in the next two weeks. He will chair the weekly health defense council meeting tomorrow and could speak afterwards.

The health situation in France is deteriorating, and many scientists and epidemiologists are urging the government to impose another national lockdown. The Paris hospitals group issued a warning that if a new strict lockdown is not imposed on April 1, 230 people will be hospitalized every day in Greater Paris, almost double the number today.

In terms of intensive care cases, the peak of the second wave has been surpassed. More people are currently being treated in intensive care in France than in November 2020. However, the total number of people being treated in hospital is lower now than it was in the second wave – 28,000 now, compared with 33,000 last November.

FROM OUR GLOBAL COLLEAGUES

CGTN Europe: The Answers Project: Are we alone in the universe?

CGTN China: Timeline: China's cooperation with WHO on COVID-19 origins study

CGTN America: Expert: COVID-19 death toll in U.S. would have been mitigated with earlier action

CGTN Africa: South Africa 'plans to vaccinate 200,000 daily'

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CGTN Europe has been providing in-depth coverage of the novel coronavirus story as it has unfolded. Here you can read the essential information about the crisis.