WORLD

London, United Kingdom | AFP |  British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s top aide Dominic Cummings defied calls to resign on Monday over allegations that he broke coronavirus rules and undermined the government’s response to the health crisis. The Brexit campaign strategist told reporters he had acted “reasonably and legally” when he …

Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | The World Health Organization said Monday it had temporarily suspended clinical trials of hydroxychloriquine as a potential treatment for COVID-19 being carried out across a range of countries as a precautionary measure. The decision came after publication last week of a study in The Lancet which …

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 …

London, United Kingdom | AFP | British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday failed to draw a line under a scandal over his top aide Dominic Cummings allegedly breaching coronavirus rules as pressure mounted on the Brexit mastermind to go. Johnson faces the threat of his government’s authority being undermined in …

  Paris, France | AFP | Global stock markets were firmer Monday, buoyed by the prospect of further easing of coronavirus lockdowns despite sharp increases in case rates in some countries such as Brazil. On the downside, an upsurge in Sino-US tensions, especially over Chinese plans to introduce a national security …

Beijing, China | AFP | The Chinese virology institute at the centre of US allegations it may have been the source of the COVID-19 pandemic has three live strains of bat coronavirus on-site, but none match the new global contagion, its director has said. Scientists think COVID-19 — which first emerged …

New York, United States | AFP | Faced with the calamitous fallout from the coronavirus on airline customers and the broader economy, Boeing found itself in an unfamiliar and uncomfortable position in March. The company, a longtime symbol of American industrial power, was unable to raise the funds to finance its …

Beijing, China | AFP |  China said Sunday that relations with the United States were “on the brink of a new Cold War”, fuelled in part by tensions over the coronavirus pandemic, as Muslims around the world celebrated a muted end to the holy month of Ramadan. Foreign Minister Wang Yi …

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 …

Netanyahu to face court in ‘unprecedented’ corruption trial Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | Israel’s veteran Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set Sunday to become the country’s first sitting premier to face criminal charges over a string of corruption allegations which he denies. Fresh from forming a new government after more …