WORLD

Beijing, China | AFP | China and the United States should “unite to fight” the deadly coronavirus pandemic, President Xi Jinping said in a call with Donald Trump on Friday, as he called for the US to improve relations. The two countries have clashed in recent weeks over the virus, and …

  London, United Kingdom | AFP |  British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced on Friday that he is self-isolating after testing positive for COVID-19. “Over the last 24 hours I have developed mild symptoms and tested positive for coronavirus,” he said on Twitter, posting a video message. “I am now self-isolating, …

Budapest, Hungary | AFP |  A “dictatorship” at the heart of the EU? A draft law to grant anti-coronavirus emergency measures set for adoption by Budapest has alarmed observers who fear it will hand Prime Minister Viktor Orban unlimited power. “Hungary is a special case, nowhere else have you the kind …

Washington, United States | AFP |  New Orleans, the Louisiana city known as the “Big Easy” famed for its jazz and nightlife, has become an epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic gripping the United States. Bourbon Street, the normally bustling heart of the French Quarter, is eerily quiet, its music silenced and …

Washington, United States | AFP |  The United States now has more COVID-19 infections than any other country, and a record number of newly unemployed people, as the coronavirus crisis deepens around the world. Healthcare systems in even the most developed nations are being stretched to breaking point with grim warnings …

Washington, United States | AFP | President Donald Trump, keen for an early lifting of economically costly social distancing measures against the coronavirus, said Thursday he would propose dividing the United States by risk levels. In a letter to state governors released by the White House, Trump said that better testing now allows the mapping …

Paris, France | AFP | Here are the latest developments in the coronavirus crisis: – US Senate passes huge rescue package – The US Senate unanimously approves the nation’s largest-ever rescue package, a $2 trillion lifeline to suffering Americans, depleted hospitals and an economy ravaged by the pandemic. The measure must …

Vatican City, Holy See | AFP | Pope Francis was reported Thursday to have tested negative for the novel coronavirus after a person in his residence was said to have contacted COVID-19. Several Italian newspapers with reputable sources in the Vatican said the Italian clergyman who got sick had lived for …

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | AFP |  Leaders of the G20 major economies will hold an online summit Thursday in a bid to fend off a coronavirus-triggered recession, after criticism the group has been slow to address the crisis. US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin will join the emergency …

London, United Kingdom | AFP |  Gold, prized by investors in times of crisis as a safe haven, is experiencing surging demand in the face of the coronavirus outbreak — from both commodity traders and retail buyers. The precious metal had forged a seven-year peak on commodity markets this month as …