LIMA, Peru — Archbishop Carlos Castillo on Sunday looked out over a cathedral full of faces — none of them now alive.
The cleric had filled his church with more than 5,000 portraits of those who have died in the pandemic that is burning across Peru and South America, using his broadcast homily to criticize a health system he said "is based on egotism and on business and not on mercy and solidarity with the people."
Covid-19 has taken at least 6,400 lives in the nation of some 32 million people — a toll second only to that of Brazil in South America.
Hundreds have died without any help from the health system, and many families have faced financial ruin due to the cost of trying to care for the ill. The nation faces a projected economic contraction of 12% this year, and Castillo called for solidarity with the poor.
"An even harder moment is coming," he said. "It would be terrible if in the times to come we have thousands of these photos — but dead of hunger."
Church workers spent days filling the pews with images of coronavirus victims, and when the 84 pews were filled, the archbishop ordered thousands of photos more attached to the base of the columns that rise to the arched ceiling.
Virus Is Out of Control in Pakistan
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AP) — Pakistan's upward spiral of new virus infections neared 145,000 Monday amid warnings from political leaders that the numbers could double by the end of June and were likely to hit a stunning 1.2 million by the end of July if Pakistan's 220 million people continue to flout basic precautions such as mask wearing.
Planning and Development Minister Asad Umer, who heads the government's Covid-19 command center, warned that the virus will rampage through Pakistan unless there is "a change in our attitude toward the virus," that ends the relentless refusal of most in Pakistan to social distance and wear masks in public.
Still, he defended Pakistan's easing on lockdown restrictions saying the country's economy would collapse under the burden of a total shutdown. Pakistan has stepped back on some easing of restrictions, closing markets on the weekend and extending closures of large wedding halls, restaurants, gymnasiums and large gatherings.
Pakistan's doctors have pleaded for stricter lockdowns, saying the struggling health care system is already straining under the escalating numbers of infections. Pakistan has reported 2,729 deaths since mid March, almost certainly an undercount.
France Is Fully Reopening
PARIS — President Emmanuel Macron announced that France is fully reopening its economy, including all restaurants, to accelerate the country's recovery after virus crisis.
Macron said restaurants in the Paris region will be allowed to open indoor seating starting on Monday. Before then, only outdoor seating was permitted.
Restaurants in other French regions have already reopened.
From June 22, all nursery schools, primary schools and junior high schools will be open and mandatory for students — instead of classes capped to small groups and many children staying at home.
Macron also confirmed that the second round of local elections that have been interrupted by the virus lockdown will take place on June 28.
"We must relaunch our economy," Macron said.
France is reopening its borders with other European countries at midnight and will start allowing visitors from other continents on July 1.
The country, which has reported at least 29,398 deaths from the virus in hospitals and nursing homes, has been under strict lockdown from March 17 to May 11, before gradually easing restrictions.
Boris Johnson Wants Distancing Eased
LONDON — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has ordered a review of the government's two-meter (6.5-feet) social distancing rule, saying the falling number of coronavirus cases gives the government "more margin for maneuver" in easing the guideline.