Top Italian doctor’s claim virus ‘no longer exists’ sparks row Rome, Italy | AFP | A claim by a leading Italian doctor that the new coronavirus “no longer exists” in the country sparked a furore Monday, with the government urging caution. Italy is preparing this week for the next big …
Read More »Merkel snubs Trump invite
Merkel a ‘no’ for Trump’s in-person G7 summit: report Washington, United States | AFP | German Chancellor Angela Merkel will not attend an in-person summit of G7 leaders that US President Donald Trump has suggested he will host despite concerns over the coronavirus pandemic, the Politico website quoted her spokesman …
Read More »Now, Trump pulls US out of World Health Organisation
Trump says US ‘terminating’ relationship with WHO Washington, United States | AFP | President Donald Trump said Friday he was severing US ties with the World Health Organization, which he says failed to do enough to combat the initial spread of the novel coronavirus. Trump first suspended funding to the …
Read More »Three jailed Omar Bashir aides have virus
Khartoum, Sudan | AFP | Sudanese authorities said Wednesday that three former senior aides to ousted president Omar al-Bashir have caught the novel coronavirus in prison. Former officials Ali Othman Taha, Ahmed Mohamed Haroun and Abdulreheem Mohamed Hussein have been held in Khartoum’s Kober prison since Bashir’s military ouster in …
Read More »Scientists unravel secrets from the faults in our genes
Tokyo, Japan | AFP | Imagine the body’s instruction manual, the genome: here words are genes, letters are DNA, and the equivalent of typos can have disastrous consequences. In recent years, scientists have grown increasingly fluent in the language of genome, but much remains mysterious, including the function of many of …
Read More »Joe Biden is back – from COVID-19 seclusion
Joe Biden makes first public appearance since March 15 New Castle, United States | AFP | Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, emerged from more than two months of seclusion Monday, wearing a black face mask during a visit to lay a wreath on the day the United States …
Read More »Dubai bounces back, put’s its tech to the test
Pandemic gives Dubai chance to put tech to the test Dubai, United Arab Emirates | AFP | From smart police helmets to research labs, the novel coronavirus has given Dubai an opportunity to test its technological and scientific clout as it shapes its approach to the pandemic. A key part …
Read More »Coronavirus fails to halt conflict in DRC’s powder-keg east
Goma, DR Congo | AFP | Coronavirus has swiftly gained status as the world’s No. 1 threat but in eastern DR Congo, one of Africa’s most volatile regions, militia killings and ethnic violence are an older and — for now — far greater source of dread. Some 2,000 kilometres (1,200 …
Read More »DRC officials deny Corona-virus figures manipulated
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | Government officials in the Democratic Republic of Congo have denied any manipulation of its figures for coronavirus cases and deaths. The controversy came as health officials announced DR Congo’s latest COVID-19 figures which stand at 63 deaths from 2,025 cases, most of them in …
Read More »Trump: It is time to move from COVID-19 to golf
Trump hits the golf course as US kicks off summer season Washington, United States | AFP | President Donald Trump kicked off the start of the American summer season on Saturday with his first golf outing in two months, underlining his push for a return to normal life in the …
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