World News

London: Former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair questioned US President Donald Trump’s leadership over the “terrifying” novel coronavirus pandemic and expressed concerns about the lack of global coordination in tackling the health crisis. “The worry I have that an absence of global coordination and global leadership that’s necessary for it is a huge problem,” the Daily Mail on Monday quoted …

Bangkok: As Brazil and India struggle with surging coronavirus cases, a top health expert is warning that the world is still smack in the middle of the pandemic, dampening hopes for a speedy global economic rebound and renewed international travel. “Right now, we’re not in the second wave. We’re right in the middle of the first wave globally,” said Dr …

London: A junior minister in Boris Johnson’s Cabinet resigned from his post on Tuesday in protest against the UK Prime Minister’s support of his top aide, Dominic Cummings, over a perceived breach of the strict stay-at-home COVID-19 lockdown rules. Johnson’s embattled Chief Strategy Adviser faced a volley of hostile questions from the media on Monday evening when Downing Street took …

Bangkok: As Brazil and India struggle with surging coronavirus cases, a top health expert is warning that the world is still smack in the middle of the pandemic, dampening hopes for a speedy global economic rebound and renewed international travel. “Right now, we’re not in the second wave. We’re right in the middle of the first wave globally,” said Dr …

Jerusalem: Bethlehems Church of the Nativity reopened its doors on Tuesday after being closed for almost three months due to the coronavirus pandemic. The sacred building, widely considered to be the cradle of Christianity, welcomed worshippers again along with other churches and mosques as part of the West Bank’s lockdown de-escalation. “Following the evolvement of the situation in the Holy …

PTI London The furore surrounding top Downing Street aide Dominic Cummings’ perceived breach of the coronavirus stay-at-home lockdown rules by travelling 260 miles to his parents’ home refused to die down on Monday. The Opposition branded British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s defence of Cummings as an “insult” to all the sacrifices made by the British public during the pandemic, with …

IANS Beijing China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi has accused the US of spreading “conspiracies and lies” about the coronavirus pandemic, ratcheting up tensions between the two nations, it was reported. Speaking at an annual news conference during China’s parliamentary session on Sunday, Wang said that “some political forces in the US are taking China-US relations hostage”, the BBC reported. He …

IANS Tokyo Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Monday lifted the countrys nationwide state of emergency, ending restrictions in the remaining areas where the order was still in effect due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “We had very stringent criteria for lifting the state of emergency. We have judged that we have met this criteria,” the BBC quoted Abe as saying …

PTI Karachi The pilot of the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA)’s crashed plane ignored three warnings from the air traffic controllers about the aircraft’s altitude and speed before the landing, saying he was satisfied and would handle the situation, according to a report on Monday. The national flag carrier’s PK-8303 tragedy on Friday, in which 97 people were killed and two …

Beijing: The United States is pushing relations with China to “the brink of a new Cold War”, China’s foreign minister said Sunday, rejecting US “lies” over the coronavirus while saying Beijing was open to an international effort to find its source. Keeping up the worsening war of words with Washington over the pandemic and a Beijing move to tighten control …