Emmanuel Macron the French president said that Europe and the United States should urgently allocate 3% to 5% of their coronavirus vaccine supplies to developing countries where vaccination campaigns have scarcely begun. In an interview granted to the UK-based Financial Times newspaper, he said some African nations were having to …
Read More »Nigerian jailed in US over $11m cyber fraud scheme
A US court has sentenced a Nigerian businessman to 10 years in jail for running a cyber fraud scheme that stole at least $11m from its victims. Obinwanne Okeke, also known as Invictus Obi, used Nigerian-based companies to defraud people in the US state of Virginia. His Invictus Group companies …
Read More »Taiwan says BioNTech vaccine deal is on hold
A deal for Taiwan to buy 5 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine developed by Germany’s BioNTech SE is on hold, the island’s health minister said on Wednesday, citing potential Chinese pressure for the delay. According to the Taiwan Health Minister Chen Shih-chung, officials were on the verge of announcing …
Read More »Coronavirus: another variant discovered in the UK
Scientists have identified another new variant of coronavirus in the UK with some potentially troubling mutations. Researchers at the University of Edinburgh said the variant, known as B1525, has been detected through genome sequencing in countries including Denmark, the United States and Australia. Some 32 cases have been identified in …
Read More »Germany police hit with Jerusalema dance bill
North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany’s most populous state, says it has had to pay fees to Warner Music after several of its police forces took part in a viral dance challenge. The song Jerusalema by South Africa’s Master KG spread online last year after groups around the world choreographed it to spread …
Read More »Bangladesh court sentences five to death for killing U.S. blogger
A court in Bangladesh sentenced to death five members of an Islamist militant group on Tuesday for killing a U.S. blogger critical of religious extremism six years ago. Avijit Roy, a U.S. citizen of Bangladeshi origin, was hacked to death here by machete-wielding assailants in February 2015 while returning home …
Read More »Russia is ready to cut EU ties if hit with painful sanctions
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said Moscow is ready to sever ties with the European Union if the bloc hits it with painful economic sanctions, according to extracts of an interview posted on the ministry’s website on Friday. Relations between Russia and the West have come under renewed pressure …
Read More »UK’s mutating variant a concern as it might undermine vaccines
The coronavirus variant first found in the British region of Kent is a concern because it is mutating and so could undermine the protection given by vaccines against developing COVID-19, the head of the UK’s genetic surveillance programme said. The coronavirus has killed 2.35 million people and turned normal life …
Read More »U.S.-China bickering over COVID continues as WHO’s Wuhan probe ends
China called on the United States on Wednesday to invite the World Health Organization to investigate origins of the COVID-19 outbreak there, as sparring over the pandemic continued after the WHO wrapped up its field work in the Chinese city of Wuhan. Hours after the WHO team revealed preliminary findings …
Read More »Joe Biden promises to strengthen ties with African Union
Joe Biden the new American President promised to rebuild his country’s partnership with the African Union (AU) moments after he delivered his first foreign policy speech since taking office. His predecessor, Donald Trump, sparked a row in 2018 over his alleged use of the word “shithole” to describe African nations. …
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