Covid: N Korea announces first virus death and children included in UK inquiryon May 13, 2022 at 7:06 am

Here are five things to bring you up to date about the coronavirus pandemic this Friday morning.

Just a day after confirming its first official Covid cases since the start of the pandemic, North Korea has revealed someone has died having tested positive for the Omicron variant. It’s the first official death recorded from Covid in the country and comes as 187,000 people with fever symptoms are being “isolated and treated”, state media reports.

Children and young people will be included in the UK’s public inquiry into the handling of the Covid pandemic. They hadn’t originally been mentioned when draft terms were published in March. That sparked criticism and after a public consultation, the scope of the inquiry has now been broadened to incorporate the effect on them. Read more here.

Since the pandemic, women in Scotland have been able to take medication to terminate a pregnancy at home following a phone consultation. These early at-home abortions will continue post-pandemic, in a move that brings Scotland in line with England and Wales. Here’s the full story.

The death toll from Covid has reached a grim milestone in the US. It has hit one million – but could be higher according to the World Health Organization – and is the highest official total in the world. We’ve spoken to some people asking what they think, including one who says: “We don’t have an end in sight.”

Passengers are returning to the skies and jobs will be coming up at one airport as managers prepare for a busy summer. In April 1.2m passengers passed through the gates of Luton Airport compared with 106,000 at the same time last year. These figures, alongside plans to recruit staff, demonstrate the airport’s “continued recovery” after restrictions were lifted, says chief executive Alberto Martin.

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Think you might have Covid? Here are the symptoms you should look out for, including nine of the latest symptoms to be added to the list.

You can find more information, advice and guides on our coronavirus page.

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