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by Hiroshi HIYAMA Agence France Presse TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned Tuesday of Beijing’s “malign activity in the region” as he met with key Asia-Pacific allies in Tokyo, presenting a united front against an increasingly assertive China. The top US diplomat is meeting his Japanese, Australian and Indian counterparts on a trip that was scaled back after President Donald Trump and a raft of staff and advisors contracted […]
by Sebastian Smith Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — President Donald Trump checked out of hospital Monday after four days of emergency treatment for Covid-19, pulling off his mask the moment he reached the White House and vowing to quickly get back on the campaign trail. Shortly beforehand, Trump had tweeted that Americans, who have lost nearly 210,000 people to the virus, have nothing to fear. A series of made-for-TV moments allowed […]
NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — The International Monetary Fund on Monday approved new emergency aid for 28 of the world’s poorest countries to help them alleviate their debt and better cope with the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The announcement, which follows a similar measure passed in mid-April for 25 countries, is intended to help the countries cover their debt repayments to the IMF for the next six months and “free up scarce financial […]
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has ordered a nationwide drive to boost the ailing economy ahead of a key party congress in January, state media reported Tuesday. The decision was made during a meeting of the ruling Workers’ Party and comes as the coronavirus pandemic and recent floods have added yet more pressure on the isolated country’s flagging economy. Mandatory mass mobilisation drives, featuring extra-long work hours and additional […]
NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — New York will temporarily close schools in nine neighborhoods experiencing an uptick in coronavirus infections, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced Monday, highlighting the difficulty of keeping children in classrooms during the pandemic. The public and private schools are in areas of Brooklyn and Queens, where the rate of positive cases has been above the three percent threshold for more than seven days. New York — America’s largest school district with […]
by Brian Knowlton and Joshua Melvin Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Donald Trump sparked an angry backlash from the medical community Sunday with a protocol-breaking visit to his supporters outside the hospital where he is being treated for the highly-infectious, potentially deadly new coronavirus. He was masked as he waved from inside his bulletproof vehicle during the short trip outside Walter Reed military medical center near Washington, which appeared […]
by Robin MILLARD Agence France Presse GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — The Covid-19 pandemic is having a “devastating impact” on mental health services globally, the World Health Organization said Monday, ahead of a large fundraising push. It warned that mental health had been overlooked in the crisis, pointing to a survey conducted between June and August that revealed severe disruptions to services in 93 countries. While 83 percent of the 130 countries surveyed had included mental […]
by Pia OHLIN STOCKHOLM, Sweden (AFP) — Americans Harvey Alter and Charles Rice together with Briton Michael Houghton won the Nobel Medicine Prize on Monday for the discovery of the Hepatitis C virus, the Nobel jury said. The three were honored for their “decisive contribution to the fight against blood-borne hepatitis, a major global health problem that causes cirrhosis and liver cancer in people around the world,” the jury said. Thanks to their discovery, highly […]
CARACAS, Venezuela (AFP) — Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said Sunday his son will join trials of Sputnik V, the coronavirus vaccine which was met with caution when Russia announced it was the world’s first to be approved. An initial batch of the vaccine arrived in Venezuela on Friday, the government announced, and 2,000 residents will participate in the trials. “In this clinical trial phase, my son, Nicolas Ernesto Maduro Guerra, told me of his decision […]
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — The United Kingdom passed 500,000 confirmed coronavirus infections on Sunday, official figures showed, in the latest grim milestone for the European country worst-hit by the pandemic. Health authorities blamed a technical glitch for a sudden spike in cases announced in evening figures that had kept several thousand cases from the last week of September off the official tally. Sunday’s numbers showed 22,961 cases for the day, a rise of more […]
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AFP) — Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern declared on Monday New Zealand “beat the virus again” and announced restrictions in the country’s largest city would be eased, after a second Covid-19 wave was contained. The virus was believed to have been eradicated in late May after a strict national lockdown led to New Zealanders enjoying 102 days without community transmission. But a new cluster emerged in Auckland in August, forcing the city of […]
Honiara, Solomon Islands (AFP) — The Solomon Islands announced they have lost the battle to stay free of the coronavirus, leaving just nine small, remote territories that have not reported a single case. Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare told the Pacific island nation in a televised address that a student who recently arrived from the Philippines on a repatriation flight carrying 96 passengers had returned a positive test. “It pains me to say that we have […]
