*) Brazil coronavirus outbreak worsens

We start in Brazil, which saw its worst single-day spike in Covid-19 cases on Wednesday – nearly 20,000 new infections.

With more than 291,000 cases and 18,000 deaths, Brazil has become the world’s third hardest-hit country by the pandemic after the US and Russia.

The total number of global coronavirus cases surged past five million on Wednesday.

*) UN envoy urges Israel to abandon annexation threats

UN's Middle East envoy Nickolay Mladenov says Israel must abandon its threat to annex parts of the occupied West Bank.

"The dangerous prospect of annexation by Israel of parts of Occupied West Bank is a growing threat," Mladenov told the UN Security Council.

His remarks came after Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas announced he is ending "all agreements" with Israel and the US over the plan.

*) Cyclone leaves deaths in India and Bangladesh

Cyclone Amphan has slammed into coastal India and Bangladesh, killing at least 22 people.

Up to eight people have died in Bangladesh as India’s West Bengal state saw at least 12 fatalities.

At the moment, Cyclone Amphan’s damages are impossible to assess accurately; most of the deaths appeared to be a result of collapsing walls and drowning.

*) Michigan dam failure displaces thousands

More than 10,000 residents have evacuated their homes in the US state of Michigan after two dams failed following heavy rain.

Governor Gretchen Whitmer has declared a state of emergency in Midland County, the site of the breached dams.

The National Weather Service warned of life-threatening flash floods and urged people in the area to seek higher ground immediately.

And finally…

*) Global warning turns Antarctica's snow green

“Green snow” caused by blooming algae is expected to spread in the Antarctic Peninsula with increases in global temperatures.

Researchers combined satellite imagery with on-the-ground observations to detect the current extent of green algae in the continent.

They identified more than 1,600 separate green algae blooms on snow across the peninsula, with a combined surface area of 1.9 sq km.