World
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Most Canadians concerned about being sick with COVID-19
Ottawa: Two-thirds of Canadians say they are concerned about becoming sick with COVID-19, a four-point increase from March, according to a survey issued by Canada’s Angus Reid Institute on Friday. Meanwhile, four…
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NASA to land first person of colour on Moon
Washington: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) will land the first person of colour on the moon as part of an international spaceflight program called Artemis, according to the US space…
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Prince Philip funeral scaled-down due to Covid, public offered online tributes
London: The British public are being urged to stay Covid-secure and use online methods to pay tribute to Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, who passed away at Windsor Castle on Friday morning.…
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Biden administration seeks USD 715 bn defence budget to ‘deter’ China, Russia
Washington DC: US President Joe Biden has asked Congress to provide USD 715 billion for the defence budget to “deter” Russia and China, the White House said. “The President’s 2022 discretionary request…
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Strict week-long lockdown in Bangladesh from April 14
Dhaka: A strict 7-day lockdown is going to be enforced in Bangladesh, from April 14, allowing only emergency services to remain in operation, it was announced on Friday. All government and private offices,…
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One-third of Antarctic ice shelf area at risk of collapse: Study
London: As climate change is making temperatures soar, more than a third of the Antarctic’s ice shelf could be at risk of collapsing into the sea, and causing global sea-levels to rise, new…
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US adds 7 Chinese supercomputing firms on Entity List
San Francisco: After Huawei, ZTE and a host of Chinese companies, the US Commerce Department has now added seven supercomputing firms to its Entity List for allegedly supporting China’s military efforts. The move…
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Positive atmosphere, little progress in Iran nuclear talks
Berlin: Nascent talks aimed at bringing the United States back into the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran broke Friday without any immediate signs of progress on the thorny issues dividing Washington and Tehran,…
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US sanctions on Myanmar gems target key junta funding source
Bangkok: The latest US sanctions on Myanmar target an army-controlled gems business rife with corruption and abuses that is one of the junta’s key sources of revenue. It’s unclear if the sanctions will…
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Sri Lanka: Jaffna’s Mayor arrested for trying to resurrect LTTE
Colombo: Sri Lanka’s Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) on Friday arrested the Mayor of Jaffna Municipal Council Manivannan Visvalingam for allegedly trying to promote the ideology of the banned militant Liberation Tigers of…
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Prince Philip, husband of Queen Elizabeth II, dies aged 99
London: Buckingham Palace officials say Prince Philip, the husband of Queen Elizabeth II, has died. He was 99. Philip spent a month in hospital earlier this year before being released on March 16…
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18-year-old boy becomes youngest billionaire in the world
New Delhi: Germany’s Kevin David Lehmann (18) became the youngest billionaire in the world with a net worth of $3.3 billion after he received the stakes in German drugstore chain dm (drogerie…
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Iran frees South Korean ship it held amid dispute over funds
Dubai: A South Korean oil tanker held for months by Iran amid a dispute over billions of dollars seized by Seoul was freed and sailed away early Friday, just hours ahead of…
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China report accuses US of causing humanitarian disasters
Beijing: China accused the US of causing humanitarian disasters through foreign military interventions in a report Friday that was the latest broadside by Beijing amid increasingly contentious relations with the Biden administration.…
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Expert says Floyd died from a lack of oxygen
Minneapolis: George Floyd died from a lack of oxygen, which damaged his brain and caused his heart to stop, a medical expert testified Thursday at former Officer Derek Chauvin’s murder trial. Floyd’s breathing…
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Australia halts AstraZeneca vaccine for most people under 50
Canberra: Australia on Thursday become the latest country to restrict use of the AstraZeneca vaccine by recommending that it not be given to people under age 50. The announcement came after drug regulators…
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Biden seems ready to extend US troop presence in Afghanistan
Washington: Without coming right out and saying it, President Joe Biden seems ready to let lapse a May 1 deadline for completing a withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan. Orderly withdrawals take time,…
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China: Two ex-govt officials in Xinjiang sentenced to death over separatism charges
Beijing: Two former government officials in the Xinjiang region have been sentenced to death on charges of separatism, as China continues its crackdown and rights violations in the region despite international outcry.…
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Visually impaired Pakistani student wins scholarship to Oxford University
A 22-year-old visually impaired Pakistani girl, Khansa Maria, student of Georgetown University’s Qatar Campus, has been selected for the Rhode Scholarship for the fall of 2021 at Oxford University. She is planning…
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Pakistan: Women activists facing blasphemy allegations after ‘Aurat March’
Islamabad: The controversial blasphemy law in Pakistan, which have long been used to subjugate the minorities in the countries, is now being employed to silence women fighting for their rights. Recently, two…
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NZ temporarily suspends travel from India to combat surge in COVID-19 infected travellers: PM Ardern
Melbourne: New Zealand has for the first time imposed a temporary ban on travellers coming from India, including its citizens, for about two weeks from April 11 due to a surge in…
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Canada’s Ontario to begin 4-week COVID-19 state of emergency today
Ontario: Ontario is declaring a state of emergency and introducing a stay-at-home order effective Thursday amid an increase in coronavirus variant cases, Premier Doug Ford announced on Wednesday. “I am declaring a…
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Australia: Indian-origin girl with ultra-rare fatal disease waiting for treatment
Melbourne: Twelve-year-ago, life was going well for Indian-origin Neeraj Sawhney and his wife Vandana in Australia, they were blessed with their first kid, a baby girl. They named her Trisha. Few years…
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32 sentenced to life imprisonment for failed Turkey coup
Ankara: A Turkish court has sentenced 32 people, including former soldiers, to life imprisonment for their involvement in the 2016 failed coup, according to state media.Wednesday’s verdict by the 19th Ankara Heavy…
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Morocco to impose night curfew during Ramadan
Rabat: Morocco has announced a night curfew during the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan in an effort to combat Covid-19 spread. A government statement issued on Wednesday said that a nationwide night…
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China on back foot over potential boycott of Beijing Winter Games
Beijing: The Chinese Foreign Ministry on Wednesday said that boycotting the upcoming Winter Olympics in Beijing would go against the spirit of the Olympic Charter after the United States hinted at the…
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US navy makes 4th transit through Taiwan Strait under Biden amid China tensions
Washington DC: The US guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain on Wednesday carried out a transit through the Taiwan Strait amid the increasing Chinese aggression in the region. US warships have made…
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John Kerry meets PM Modi, says US will facilitate access to green technologies, requisite finance
New Delhi: US Special Presidential Envoy on Climate John Kerry met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday and noted that the United States would support India’s climate plans by facilitating affordable access…
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French senate votes to ban hijab for Muslim girls below 18 yrs
Less than a month after voters in Switzerland supported a ban on burqa and the niqab, the French Senate on March 30th voted to ban the hijab (the headscarf that Muslim women wear)…
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Jeff Bezos backs Biden’s infrastructure plan, tax hike proposal
San Francisco: Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos has endorsed US President Joe Biden’s infrastructure plan and even a hike in corporate tax rate. Biden last week unveiled an ambitious $2 trillion plan…
