by Haeril HALIM / Agnes ANYA Agence France Presse JAKARTA, Indonesia (AFP) — A powerful earthquake rocked Indonesia’s Sulawesi island Friday, killing at least 42 people, levelling a hospital and severely damaging other buildings, authorities said, as they warned there were people still trapped beneath rubble. Hundreds were also injured when the 6.2-magnitude quake struck in the early hours, triggering panic among the terrified residents of the island, which was hit by a huge […]
Tag: Virus
World migration down 30 percent due to pandemic: UN
UNITED NATIONS (AFP) — The coronavirus pandemic has slowed global migration by nearly 30 percent, with around two million fewer migrants between 2019 and 2020, according to a UN report released on Friday. Some 281 million people were living outside their country of origin in 2020. The report, entitled “International Migration 2020,” showed that two-thirds of registered migrants lived in just 20 countries, with the United States at the top of the list, with […]
WHO meeting urges increased virus sequencing to combat variants
by Robin MILLARD Agence France Presse GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — The World Health Organization’s emergency committee called Friday for globally-ramped up coronavirus sequencing studies in order to combat troubling new variants stalking the globe. The meeting was dragged forward by two weeks for urgent talks on the emerging, seemingly more contagious strains of the virus, as the death toll from the Covid-19 pandemic topped two million, according to an AFP count. The emergency committee came […]
More than 2 million COVID-19 deaths worldwide as cases top 93.5 million — Johns Hopkins data
(Eagle News) — The total number of COVID-19 deaths worldwide surpassed two million as global confirmed cases reached 93.5 million, according to data from the Johns Hopkins University. As of 3 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 16, Philippine Standard Time, the total confirmed coronavirus deaths around the world have reached 2,003,625 while COVID-19 cases reached 93,580,828. This comes amid rising number of COVID-19 virus mutations that are more infectious than previous strains, prompting the World Health […]
UK to require all arrivals quarantine as virus deaths rise
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Friday said that all arrivals to the UK will have to quarantine and show negative virus tests from next week as hospitalisations and deaths continued to soar but new cases fell. The measures which enter into force early on Monday come after Britain banned all arrivals from South America and Portugal on Friday over fears of importing a new coronavirus variant from Brazil. […]
Germany hits 2 million infections as WHO tackles new strains
by Agence France Presse bureaus FRANKFURT AM MAIN, Germany (AFP) — Germany on Friday passed two million coronavirus cases as a World Health Organization emergency committee readied to issue advice on stemming the spread of new, more contagious strains of the disease. The surge in Europe’s biggest economy comes as the global death toll from the pandemic approaches two million and many countries double down on virus restrictions, with vaccination drives still in their […]
Concerns as India to roll out home-grown vaccine Covaxin
by Jalees ANDRABI Agence France Presse BHOPAL, India (AFP) — A homegrown coronavirus vaccine will be rolled out in India from Saturday even though clinical trials haven’t been completed. But the government insists it will be safe and effective. The All India Drug Action Network (AIDAN), an independent watchdog, led a chorus of concern from experts saying it was “shocked” and “baffled” by the emergency approval of Covaxin. India has been hit hard by the […]
JUST IN: Patients, staff trapped in rubble of hospital flattened by Indonesia quake
More than a dozen patients and staff are trapped beneath the rubble of a hospital that was flattened when a 6.2-magnitude earthquake rocked Indonesia’s Sulawesi island, killing at least three people, authorities said. “The hospital is flattened — it collapsed,” said Arianto from the rescue agency in Mamuju city, who goes by one name. “There are patients and hospital employees trapped under the rubble and we’re now trying to reach them,” he added, without […]
Jordan’s king gets coronavirus jab
AMMAN, Jordan (AFP) — Jordan’s King Abdullah II received a Covid-19 vaccine jab on Thursday, a day after the country launched its inoculation campaign. Abdullah was vaccinated alongside his son and Crown Prince Hussein and his uncle Prince Hassan, the royal palace said in Twitter posts accompanied by pictures of them getting a shot in the arm. Jordan kicked off its Covid-19 vaccinations on Wednesday with injections for healthcare workers, people with chronic illnesses and […]
Erdogan gets jab as Turkey unrolls Chinese vaccine
by Burcin Gercek and Ozan Kose in Istanbul ANKARA, Turkey (AFP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stripped down to a black t-shirt and got vaccinated on Thursday as the nation of 83 million people began rolling out China’s Sinovac jab despite conflicting data about its efficacy. The 66-year-old Turkish leader was whisked into an Ankara hospital by a bevy of security guards before emerging about an hour later to stress the importance of officials […]
France imposes 6 pm nationwide virus curfew
by Jürgen HECKER and Joseph SCHMID PARIS, France (AFP) — The French government will impose a daily nationwide curfew at 6 pm starting Saturday to combat a worrying increase in Covid-19 cases, Prime Minister Jean Castex said on Thursday. The measure will remain in force for at least two weeks, Castex told a news conference. Except for emergency services, all services and shops will have to close at that time, he said. “The virus is […]
Israel hits 2 million vaccinated
JERUSALEM, Undefined (AFP) — The number of people inoculated in Israel for coronavirus passed the two million threshold Thursday, with the prime minister saying there was “light at the end of the tunnel”. Israel “will become the first country to emerge from the corona crisis,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu boasted. “We see the light at the end of the tunnel,” he said, all smiles as he watched an Israeli woman become the second millionth to […]





