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by Sunghee Hwang SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — Nuclear-armed North Korea is advancing on the front lines of cyberwarfare, analysts say, stealing billions of dollars and presenting a clearer and more present danger than its banned weapons programmes. Pyongyang is under multiple international sanctions over its atomic bomb and ballistic missile programmes, which have seen rapid progress under North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. But while the world’s diplomatic focus has been on its nuclear […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Half of all US adults have now received full Covid-19 vaccines, the White House said Tuesday, marking another huge milestone in the fight against the pandemic. “Now 50% of all American adults are fully vaccinated,” tweeted Cyrus Shahpar, Covid-19 data director for the White House. That means half the adult population has received either two doses of the Moderna or Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines, or one of the single-dose Johnson & Johnson. […]
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — A new US travel warning for Japan over virus risks will not affect this summer’s pandemic-postponed Olympic Games, the Japanese government and Tokyo 2020 organizers said Tuesday. The US State Department advisory released Monday urges citizens to avoid travel to Japan, where the borders are already closed to almost all foreigners. It cites government health advice, as well as “secondary factors such as commercial flight availability, restrictions on US citizen entry, […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US health authorities said they were looking into a small number of reports of heart inflammation among some younger people who received Covid vaccines, with no clear link established for the moment. There were “relatively few reports of myocarditis,” primarily in adolescents and young adults, following doses of mRNA vaccines like Pfizer and Moderna, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said. “Most cases appear to be mild, […]
by Louis BAUDOIN WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — “English is not my first language,” writes Nakia Smith on her TikTok account, although the 22-year-old grew up in Texas. The young African American woman has been deaf since birth, and uses her large online following to promote her little-known dialect: Black American Sign Language. In her video clips, she tells her 400,000 followers about the differences between her language and the standard American Sign Language (ASL). […]
by Sebastian Smith WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — President Joe Biden acknowledged Friday there is no easy path to getting North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons but reaffirmed his “iron-clad” commitment to the US alliance with South Korea after talks with President Moon Jae-in. “We’re under no illusions how difficult this is — none whatsoever. The past four administrations have not achieved the objective. It’s an incredibly difficult objective,” Biden told reporters at […]
LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — California is on track to remove nearly all pandemic restrictions by June 15, with no mandatory capacity restrictions or social distancing requirements for those who have been vaccinated, health officials said Friday. The most populous US state suffered a severe winter Covid-19 outbreak, but now has among the nation’s lowest infection rates per capita, in part due to its vaccination program. Some 35.5 million doses have been administered. More […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — President Joe Biden signed a hate crimes law Thursday aimed at protecting Asian Americans who have suffered a surge in attacks during the Covid-19 pandemic. Racism, Biden told Asian American politicians and senior members of Congress in a packed room at the White House, is “an ugly poison that has long plagued our nation.” Reeling off a list of violent incidents, which took place against a backdrop of anti-Chinese […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — China on Thursday branded the United States an “out-and-out security risk creator” in the South China Sea, after an American warship sailed through waters near the disputed Paracel Islands. Tensions in maritime waters claimed by both China and many of its neighbors have ratcheted up recently, with Beijing staging live-fire drills and sending hundreds of fishing vessels to a reef claimed by the Philippines. China’s military said the USS Curtis Wilbur, […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — States across America are moving to cut pandemic unemployment benefits, a painful blow for millions of people who will soon be left without income. With punishing jobless levels during the Covid-19 pandemic, unemployment benefits had been extended — especially to the self-employed — and extended further until September 6, even for those who had reached the maximum duration. But now 21 out of 27 states governed by Republicans — including […]
by Sakher Abou El Oun with Sebastian Smith in Washington GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories (AFP) — US President Joe Biden called for a “significant de-escalation” in Israel’s conflict with Gaza’s armed groups ahead of a diplomatic push Thursday to stem the violence, as the sides traded further fire. Israeli fighter jets hit the residences of at least six Hamas leaders, according to an army statement, which said “military infrastructure” was stored at each site. As […]
BRUSSELS, Belgium (AFP) — The United States’ top military officer has warned the conflict between Israel and Palestinian militants Hamas is creating instability beyond Gaza, saying it is “in no one’s interest to continue fighting”. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley, speaking to journalists while flying to Brussels for a NATO meeting, urged both sides in the conflict to de-escalate, echoing comments from President Joe Biden, who has said he backs a […]
