World
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US House passes bill to ban imports from China’s Xinjiang
Washington: The US House of Representatives on Wednesday passed a bill by a vote of 428 to 1 banning imports from China’s Xinjiang made with forced labour and threatening sanctions against Chinese…
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Report: Chinese hackers targeted Southeast Asian nations
Bangkok: Chinese hackers, likely state-sponsored, have been broadly targeting government and private-sector organisations across Southeast Asia, including those closely involved with Beijing on infrastructure development projects, according to a report released Wednesday…
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UK PM Johnson moves to Plan B COVID measures as Omicron cases rise
London: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Wednesday announced tougher measures such as work from home where possible, expanded face mask rules and use of COVID-19 vaccination certificates for entry to venues,…
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Gen Rawat was strong proponent of India-US defence partnership: US
Washington: General Bipin Rawat, India’s first Chief of Defence Staff who died in a helicopter crash in Tamil Nadu, was a strong proponent of India-US defence ties and helped deepen the strategic…
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Reporters Without Borders call China ‘biggest captor of journalists’
Beijing: At least 127 journalists are currently under detention in China for reporting on ‘sensitive’ topics, said Reporters Without Borders while adding that the country is the world’s biggest captor of journalists.…
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Omicron variant may change course of COVID pandemic: WHO chief
Geneva: Certain features of the Omicron variant, including its global spread and large number of mutations, suggest it could have a major impact on the course of the Covid-19 pandemic, said the…
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Tim Cook secretly signed $275 bn deal with China, alleges report
San Francisco: Apple CEO Tim Cook ‘secretly’ signed a deal estimated to be worth more than $275 billion with Chinese officials allegedly promising Apple would do its part to develop China’s economy…
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Civilisation will ‘crumble’ if people don’t have more kids: Musk
San Francisco: Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said that the civilisation will “crumble” if people do not start having more kids, media reports say. According to The New York Post, Musk…
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Pfizer says its booster dose works well against Omicron
Washington: Pfizer on Wednesday announced that a third dose of its mRNA vaccine can protect against the Omicron variant of Covid-19. Results from an initial laboratory study demonstrated that serum antibodies induced…
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UK to turn off 2G, 3G mobile phone networks by 2033: Government
London: The UK will phase out 2G and 3G mobile networks by 2033 as part of measures to increase the security of telecommunication supply chains and to make room for 5G expansion…
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End of an era: Angela Merkel bows out after 16 years
Berlin: Angela Merkel was assured of a place in the history books as soon as she became Germany’s first female chancellor on Nov. 22, 2005. Over the next 16 years, she was…
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World shares mostly higher as virus fears ease
Bangkok: Stocks advanced Wednesday in Asia after another broad rally on Wall Street as investors wagered that the new variant of the COVID-19 virus won’t pose a big threat to the economy.…
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Coffin shaped suicide machine legalized in Switzerland
A coffin-shaped “suicide machine” that promises its users a relatively painless death in under a minute has been legalized in Switzerland. The machine ‘Sarco’ induces hypoxia and hypocapnia which is the state…
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Pfizer vax 40 times less effective against Omicron: South African study
Johannesburg: Pfizer’s mRNA-based Covid vaccine may be up to 40 times less effective against the new super mutant Omicron variant, a small study led by South African researchers have shown. The emergence of…
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China continues unprecedented campaign of repression against media under Xi Jinping
Beijing: China’s violations against its own international commitments to freedom of opinion and expression has significantly increased under the current regime. The Great Leap Backwards of Journalism in China, a report has…
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Australia joins US in diplomatic boycott of Beijing Games
Canberra: Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Wednesday Australia will join the US in a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Winter Games over human rights concerns. Morrison said it should come as no…
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Major outage at Amazon disrupts businesses across the US
Washington: A major outage in Amazon’s cloud computing network Tuesday severely disrupted services at a wide range of US companies for more than five hours, the latest sign of just how concentrated…
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Khashoggi murder case: Suspect detained in France
Paris: A suspect in the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi has been detained in France on Tuesday, French broadcaster RTL reported. According to the publication, the detained suspect is Khalid al-Otaibi,…
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Algeria to host inclusive meeting for Palestinian factions
Algiers: Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune announced that his country will host an inclusive meeting for all Palestinian factions. “After consultations with my brother (Palestinian President) Mahmoud Abbas, Algeria will soon host an…
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Rohingya genocide: Facebook faces massive $200 bn legal action in UK, US
London: Lawyers in the UK and the US on Monday initiated coordinated legal campaigns against Facebook, now known as Meta, on behalf of Rohingya Muslims for its alleged role in facilitating the…
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Biden to warn Putin of economic pain if he invades Ukraine
Washington: President Joe Biden is ready to warn Vladimir Putin during a video call Tuesday that Russia will face economy-jarring sanctions if it invades neighboring Ukraine as the U.S. president seeks a…
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WHO advises against use of convalescent plasma for Covid treatment
Geneva: Convalescent plasma shows no improvement in survival and other important measures and is not recommended for patients with Covid-19, according to a study released on Tuesday by the World Health Organization (WHO).…
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US plans diplomatic boycott of Beijing Winter Olympics
Washington: The US will stage a diplomatic boycott of the upcoming Winter Olympics in Beijing to protest Chinese human rights abuses, the White House has confirmed, a move that China has vowed…
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Apple takes Russian market regulator to court
San Francisco: Tech giant Apple has challenged an anti-trust action taken by the Russian market regulator, initiating legal action against the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS). Apple seeks a judicial review of the…
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Alibaba undergoes top management reshuffle amid China crackdown
Beijing: Chinese conglomerate Alibaba on Monday announced a major reshuffle at the top, as the country tightens its stand against domestic Big Tech companies over data and internet regulations. Toby Xu, Deputy…
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China tries to reassure on Evergrande as default fears rise
Beijing: China’s central bank released extra money for lending Monday as the government tried to reassure the public it can contain the potential fallout if a troubled real estate developer’s 310 billion…
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Imran Khan announces bravery medal for man who tried to save Sri Lankan national
Islamabad: Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Sunday announced that a medal of bravery will be conferred on a man who tried to save the Sri Lankan factory manager from a mob…
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Body of Sri Lankan national lynched by mob in Pakistan flown to Colombo
Lahore: The body of a Sri Lankan national, who was lynched and burnt by a mob in Pakistan’s Punjab province over allegations of blasphemy, was flown to Colombo on Monday. The wooden…
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ECB plans to redesign euro bills, decision expected in 2024
Berlin: The European Central Bank said Monday that it plans to redesign its euro banknotes, with a final decision on the new look expected in 2024. The euro was introduced in cash…
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Myanmar’s Suu Kyi sentenced to four years in prison
Naypyidaw: A Myanmar court sentenced ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi to four years in prison for inciting dissent against the military and breaching Covid rules. A court in Myanmar has…
