Italy has lowest daily coronavirus infections in 2 weeks — but risks losing control in south with fear of riots, looting
Italy on Tuesday saw the lowest daily increase in confirmed coronavirus cases in the last two weeks — but risks losing control of its poorer southern region amid rioting and looting during times of greater economic hardship prompted by a nationwide lockdown that has shut...
Coronavirus deaths top 4,000 in US, surpass China
The number of coronavirus related deaths topped 4,000 in the U.S. on Tuesday night, just one day after reaching the 3,000 mark. The U.S. has now surpassed China by over 700 COVID-19 fatalities — as the White House coronavirus task force said it projects 100,000...
Coronavirus: Pandemic is biggest crisis for world since WW2, says UN
The global coronavirus is the worst crisis the world has faced since World War II, the head of the United Nations has warned. Antonio Guterres spoke as the UN launched a report on the social and economic damage caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. “The new...
‘More dogs around than people’: Life in lockdown from a bench in Milan
Lockdown, day 21: it’s a wonderful morning in Milan and I decide to step out for a stroll. I want to enjoy my 200-metres of freedom: that’s how far I’m allowed to walk from home. Our ability to move has been drastically reduced after the...
Parliaments must continue to function and serve the people during the coronavirus pandemic ǀ View
One of the paradoxes of the COVID-19 crisis is that in order to develop an effective collective response, risks need to be taken by individuals. Frontline responders – the healthcare workers, doctors and nurses – are those at the highest risk, and we must do...
UK to organise rescue flights for Britons stranded abroad by coronavirus pandemic
The UK government has pledged £75 million (€84 million) to help organise special flights to bring home British travellers stranded abroad amid the coronavirus pandemic. Tens of thousands of Britons have been unable to return to the UK as countries around the world close borders...
Van Gogh painting stolen during Dutch museum’s COVID-19 closure
A painting by Dutch master Vincent van Gogh was stolen from a museum closed in order to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus, police have confirmed. The burglary from the Singer Laren museum, located 32 kilometres south-east of Amsterdam, occurred on what would have...
Didier Drogba: How Ivory Coast striker helped to halt civil war in his home nation
Al-Merrikh Stadium, in Sudan’s second largest city of Omdurman, is not one of the world’s great gladiatorial arenas. Yet this small ground – known as the Red Castle – became the setting for one of football’s most extraordinary tales. The date was 8 October 2005....
SA president announces start of mass testing
South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa has launched a mass screening programme for coronavirus. On Monday evening, the president said 10,000 field workers would be visiting homes to screen people – and those found with symptoms would be quarantined either in their homes or in hospitals....
Somalia closes down madrassas to stop virus
The government of Somalia has ordered the closure of all religious schools or madrassas in an effort to contain the spread of coronavirus. It has urged people to pray from home for the next two weeks instead of going to the mosque. Although there have...
Why a Frenchman built a ‘Tudor’ castle in Burkina Faso
Originally from France, Thibault Fornier, 55, and his business partner Jean Koala, 28, have spent the last 10 years building a “Tudor” castle, complete with turrets and battlements, on the outskirts of Burkina Faso’s capital, Ouagadougou. Hamerkop Manor is loosely based on Hampton Court Palace,...
Coronavirus: Greatest test since World War Two, says UN chief
The current coronavirus outbreak is the biggest challenge for the world since World War Two, UN Secretary General António Guterres has warned. He said it could bring a recession “that probably has no parallel in the recent past”. His warning comes amid dire predictions about...
Spain enters period of mourning as coronavirus deaths continue to spike
Spain officially entered a period of mourning on Sunday as the coronavirus death toll jumped to an estimated 6,606. The government ordered that flags be flown at half-staff and a minute of silence be observed every day to pay respects for the dead even as...
Italy’s coronavirus death toll passes 10,000; doubles in one week
Italy’s coronavirus fatalities have crossed 10,000, according to officials — more than double the number of deaths reported just one week ago. In the past 24 hours, Italy suffered 889 additional deaths, bringing the country-wide total to at least 10,023 as of Saturday, and the...
Netanyahu goes into quarantine after aide tests positive for coronavirus
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is going into self-quarantine after an aide tested positive for the coronavirus, his office confirmed Monday to Fox News. The prime minister’s office said Netanyahu and his staff will go into quarantine, “until the epidemiological investigation regarding his adviser is...
Taiwan invites US newspapers expelled by China to move their operations
Taiwan’s foreign minister on Friday invited three U.S. newspapers to move their operations to the island after China expelled journalists stationed in Beijing. China’s expulsion of The Wall Street Journal, New York Times and Washington Post reporters was the latest tit-for-tat between Beijing and Washington,...
Italy’s poorer south preps potential explosion of coronavirus, threatens students with ‘flamethrowers’
Italy’s poorer south appears to be readying for war, expecting a sudden explosion in coronavirus cases within the next 10 days, as the novel illness advances down the peninsula from the northern, affluent Lombardy region. One of the first cases of the coronavirus in Italy...
World Health Organization under the microscope: what went wrong with coronavirus?
As coronavirus started seeping from its origins in a Wuhan wet market in China late last year, the information coming from the World Health Organization (WHO) was one of dismissal, in line with the Chinese Communist Party’s muzzling of the disease’s potency. “Preliminary investigations conducted...
Wuhan, the Chinese city where coronavirus began, starts easing restrictions after two months of quarantine
The Chinese city where the coronavirus was first detected at the end of last year has begun to slowly re-open after more than two months under strict quarantine restrictions. Crowds of people – many of them wearing masks – were photographed arriving at the Wuhan...
Spain overtakes China for number of coronavirus cases – over 85,000 infections declared
Spain has overtaken China for the number of confirmed coronavirus cases, reporting a total of 85,195 on Monday. The new daily total of 812 deaths was a slight decrease on Sunday’s record of 838, bringing the overall number of fatalities to 7,340. Spain joins Italy...
Coronavirus: Is the UK testing enough people?
Testing is seen as key to tackling coronavirus and the UK hopes to rapidly increase the number of people tested in the coming weeks. But how does the UK’s approach compare with that of other countries and who can get tested? How many tests is...
Trump says Harry and Meghan must pay for security
President Donald Trump says the US will not foot the bill for Prince Harry and Meghan’s security amid reports that the pair have moved to the US from Canada. Mr Trump tweeted he was “a great friend and admirer of the Queen and the United...
Albania sends 30 doctors and nurses to Italy to help fight the COVID-19 pandemic
Albania has sent 30 doctors and nurses to Italy, the worst-hit country in Europe amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Albanian Prime minister announced on Saturday. The Albanian medical team was escorted to theTirana aiport by Albania’s PM Edi Rama, the leader announced on his Facebook...
Five stories you may have missed this week because of COVID-19
As the COVID-19 pandemic spread across Europe, the US and started to appear in Africa this week, the crisis dominated headlines, leaving little space for other news. Here are five coronavirus-free stories you might have missed: Kosovan government falls amid global pandemic Kosovo’s government fell...
More French COVID-19 patients flown to Germany and Switzerland
More French patients infected with COVID-19 have been transferred to hospitals in Germany and Switzerland, authorities have confirmed. The German Air Force confirmed on Twitter that one of its planes flew two patients from Strasbourg, in eastern France, to Ulm, in the southeastern German region...
Germany ‘increases its COVID-19 tests to 500,000 per week’
Germany has increased its number of COVID-19 tests to 500,000 per week, a German scientist said on Thursday. “The reason why Germany has so little deaths compared to its number of confirmed cases can be explained by the fact that we have a lot of...
‘Blank cheque’: Hungary expected to pass controversial COVID-19 law
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban is expected to be given sweeping new powers to manage the country’s coronavirus epidemic on Monday. A government spokesman told AP that the “extraordinary measures” – which have no limit and allow Orban’s government to bypass parliament – were needed...
Netherlands recalls hundreds of thousands of defective Chinese face masks
The Netherlands has recalled hundreds of thousands of face masks imported from China after they were found to be defective, the health ministry announced on Saturday. Dutch authorities received 1.3 million face masks from China on March 21 and distributed some of them to health...
Coronavirus: Portugal grants temporary citizenship rights to migrants
The Portuguese government is granting citizenship rights to all migrants and asylum seekers who have residency applications underway. The move is intended to ensure everybody who needs it has access to social security and health care while the country battles the spread and effects of...
Coronavirus: Belarus Premier League attracts global attention as it plays on
Football is suspended in the UK and across most of world because of the coronavirus pandemic – but the game rolls on in Belarus. The Belarusian Premier League rarely gets a mention in normal circumstances yet it is attracting attention from foreign fans as one...