Malaysia has detected its first case of a highly infectious coronavirus variant first identified in India, Health Minister Adham Baba said on Sunday, days after imposing a ban on flights from India.The variant, named B.1.617, was detected in an Indian national screened at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport, he said.The World Health Organisation has described it as a “variant of interest”, suggesting it may have mutations that would make the virus more transmissible, cause more severe disease or evade vaccine immunity.”We advise the public to remain calm… All public health efforts will continue in order to break the chain of…
Author: Mike Harrison
Google chief executive Sundar Pichai said that the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) situation in India is dire and the “worst is yet to come”. Pichai told CNN that it has been “heartening” to see the kind of attention people at the highest levels in the United States have been giving to the health crisis unfolding in India and other countries.“The situation there is dire and it has been heartbreaking to see. And I think the worst is yet to come,” said the Google CEO.“What’s been heartening, at least being here, is definitely seeing the attention here. I realise that at the…
From Ronald Reagan and Arnold Schwarzenegger to Al Franken and Donald Trump, there’s a rich history of celebrities trying out new careers in politics.The list could soon grow.In California, former Olympian Caitlyn Jenner is running for governor. In Texas, Oscar-winning actor Matthew McConaughey is generating buzz as a potential candidate for governor. In New York City, Andrew Yang, a businessman who gained fame during his quixotic 2020 presidential run, is a leading contender for the Democratic mayoral nomination.Each has the type of name recognition that other political newcomers would envy. But as they consider running some of the nation’s largest…
Indian hospitals, morgues and crematoriums have been overwhelmed as the country has reported more than 300,000 daily cases for more than 10 days straight. Reuters | , Abuja PUBLISHED ON MAY 02, 2021 05:39 PM IST Nigeria will ban travellers coming from India, Brazil and Turkey because of concerns about the rampant spread of coronavirus in those countries, a presidential committee said on Sunday.”Non-Nigerian passport holders and non-residents who visited Brazil, India or Turkey within Fourteen (14) days preceding travel to Nigeria, shall be denied entry into Nigeria,” Boss Mustapha, chairman of the presidential steering committee on COVID-19, said in…
The Chinese Defense Ministry last week urged the US to restrain its front-line forces in the air and seas near China. AP | PUBLISHED ON MAY 02, 2021 03:38 PM IST China’s Shandong aircraft carrier group has recently conducted routine annual exercises in the South China Sea, the People’s Liberation Army said Sunday, after Beijing criticized the U.S. for sending Navy ships into the strategic area.The Chinese Defense Ministry last week urged the U.S. to restrain its front-line forces in the air and seas near China. U.S. reconnaissance aircraft and warships have become more active around China since President Biden…
Myanmar security forces opened fire on some of the biggest protests against military rule in days, killing at least five people on Sunday, media reported, three months after a coup plunged the country into crisis.The protests, after a spell of dwindling crowds and what appeared to be more restraint by the security forces, were coordinated with demonstrations in Myanmar communities around the world to mark what organisers called “the global Myanmar spring revolution”.”Shake the world with the voice of Myanmar people’s unity,” the organisers said in a statement.Streams of demonstrators, some led by Buddhist monks, made their way through cities…
A social media post by a powerful wing of the Communist Party of China (CPC) had ridiculed the Covid-19 humanitarian crisis unfolding in India, comparing the lighting of funeral pyres at an Indian crematorium with the launch of a Chinese rocket last week. The post has now been deleted.The Commission for Political and Legal Affairs (CPLA) of the CPC’s central committee published a collage of two images on its Weibo account on Saturday, showing the Chinese rocket launch and the lighting of a pyre in India, side by side.The caption to the collage reads something along the lines of -…
A SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule carrying four astronauts back to Earth splashed down off Florida early Sunday, a NASA livestream showed.The crew reported they were feeling well after their arrival back on Earth following a nearly six-month mission aboard the International Space Station, NASA said.The capsule splashed down at 2:56 am (0656 GMT) in the dark in the Gulf of Mexico off Panama City after a six-and-a-half hour flight from the ISS, night-vision images relayed by NASA’s WB-57 high-altitude research aircraft showed.Teams aboard the Go Navigator recovery ship retrieved the capsule and hoisted it on to the deck about half…
China’s vaccination pace has quickened recently. However, because of its large population, China still lags behind the United States in terms of the proportion of the administered population per 100 people. Reuters | , Beijing PUBLISHED ON MAY 02, 2021 01:17 PM IST China has administered 270.41 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines in the country as of Saturday, the National Health Commission said on Sunday.That compares with 265.06 million doses given as of Friday, up 5.34 million doses.China’s vaccination pace has quickened recently. However, because of its large population, China still lags behind the United States in terms of the…
Israel has temporarily barred its citizens from travelling to India and six other countries, citing high Covid-19 infection rates there.A joint press release issued by the Prime Minister’s Office and the Health Ministry on Friday said that Israelis will not be allowed to travel to Ukraine, Brazil, Ethiopia, South Africa, India, Mexico and Turkey.This regulation will come into force on May 3 and will remain in place until May 16.Non-Israelis, however, will be able to travel to these countries, provided they plan to reside there permanently, the press release said.The regulation will not be applicable to those who stay at…