UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres Friday renewed his call for a global ceasefire, urging all parties to conflict to lay down arms and allow war-torn nations to combat the coronavirus pandemic. "The worst is yet to come," Guterres said, referring to countries beset with fighting like Syria, Libya and Yemen. "The COVID-19 storm is now coming to all these theatres of conflict." Guterres said there had been some progress following his March 23 call for peace, but that fighting still rages in a number of countries, hampering officials' ability to put into place plans to combat the virus.

"The need is urgent," Guterres said at a UN press conference. "The virus has shown how swiftly it can move across borders, devastate countries and upend lives." He said that parties to conflict in a number of countries, including Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Colombia, Libya, Myanmar, the Philippines, the South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Ukraine and Yemen, have expressed support for his call.