Europe Coronavirus Updates: UK PM discharged from hospital, ICU cases in France continue to fall

-- Italy registers 156,363 infections, death toll at 19,899;

-- UK PM is discharged from hospital while death toll in the country hits 10,612;

-- France's death toll reaches 14,393, ICU cases continue to decrease;

-- Medical supplies from China arrive in Croatia, Lithuania.

BRUSSELS, April 12 -- The following are the latest developments of the COVID-19 pandemic in European countries.

ROME -- The coronavirus pandemic has claimed 19,899 lives in locked-down Italy since the pandemic first broke out in the country on Feb. 21, according to the latest official data released on Sunday.

Speaking during a televised press conference, Civil Protection Department Chief Angelo Borrelli said that the total number of infections, fatalities, and recoveries has reached 156,363.

Sunday also saw 1,984 new active coronavirus infections, bringing the nationwide total to 102,253.

LONDON -- A total of 10,612 people who were hospitalized in Britain and tested positive for the novel coronavirus have died as of Saturday afternoon, a daily increase of 737, the Department of Health and Social Care said on Sunday.

As of Sunday morning, some 84,279 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed, said the department, adding that 352,974 tests have concluded, with 18,000 tests on Saturday.

Hours before the update was released, a Downing Street spokesman confirmed that British Prime Minister Boris Johnson "has been discharged from hospital to continue his recovery at Chequers".

PARIS -- As of Sunday, the number of people who have died from the coronavirus in France totalled 14,393, representing a one-day increase of 561, down from Saturday's 643, while serious cases decreased for the fourth straight day.

Daily deaths recorded in hospitals rose by 315 to 9,253 compared with 345 recorded on Saturday and 554 on Friday. Deaths in nursing homes increased by 251 to 5,140 since the epidemic started on March 1, according to the data released by the Health Ministry.

A total of 6,845 COVID-19 patients are being treated in intensive care units, down from 6,883 on Saturday. The decrease, for the fourth day in a row, gave the French health system small but much-needed relief.

BERLIN -- Germany on Sunday morning reported a total of 120,479 confirmed COVID-19 cases, up by 2,821 over the past 24 hours, according to the Robert Koch Institute, the country's disease control agency.

The total deaths rose by 129 to 2,673, and a total of 60,200 people had recovered, up by 2,700 from the previous day, according to the agency.

MADRID -- The number of deaths in a 24-hour period from COVID-19 rose slightly in Spain while the number of new cases fell, according to data collected by the Spanish Ministry for Health, Consumer Affairs and Social Welfare by 9:00 p.m. local time on Saturday and made public on Sunday.

The total number of people who have lost their lives from the virus in Spain rose to 16,972, a daily increase of 619 compared with 510 deaths on Saturday and 605 confirmed on Friday.

This slight increase ends a three-day period in Spain which had seen the death growth falling steadily, although it is also possible that the Easter weekend has meant some delays in the Health Ministry receiving data from Spain's 17 different regions.

ZAGREB -- A cargo aircraft from Shanghai carrying about 60 tons of medical supplies, including 3.7 tons donated by the Chinese government to Croatia, landed at the Franjo Tudman International Airport here on Sunday morning.

Through cooperation with Chinese state-owned pharmaceutical companies, MEHECO and SINOPHARM, the Croatian government has purchased large quantities of protective equipment for fighting against COVID-19, making it the largest shipment of medical supplies from China since the outbreak of the pandemic in Croatia.

VILNIUS -- The first train of a new postal rail service to Europe, loaded with much-needed medical supplies, arrived early Sunday in Vilnius, according to the Chinese Embassy in Lithuania.

Launched by Southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, it is the first of its kind to Lithuania. The rail service aims to meet the rising demand for international parcel delivery amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The rail service "opened up new, reliable and efficient logistics channel for China to transport anti-epidemic materials in large quantities to Europe," said Chinese Ambassador to Lithuania Shen Zhifei on Sunday.