The global coronavirus death toll topped 100,000 Friday as Easter celebrations around the world kicked off in near-empty churches with billions of people stuck indoors to halt the pandemic's deadly worldwide march.
The grim milestone came as the World Health Organization issued a dire warning that prematurely lifting lockdown restrictions -- which have kept more than half the world's population in lockdown -- could spark a "deadly resurgence" of the disease.
The extraordinary measures from New York to New Delhi to Naples have seen businesses and schools closed in a desperate bid to halt the virus's relentless spread and the International Monetary Fund said the world now faces the worst downturn since the Great Depression of the 1930s.
More than 1.6 million people have been infected around the world and the death toll hit 100,661 on Friday -- nearly 70 percent in hard-hit Europe.
The United States, which has quickly emerged as a virus hotspot, clocked more than 1,700 new deaths on Thursday -- bringing its toll to second highest after
"We have to respond to our confinement with all our creativity," the pontiff said. "We can either get depressed and alienated... or we can get creative."
"At the same time, lifting restrictions too quickly could lead to a deadly resurgence. The way down can be as dangerous as the way up if not managed properly."