Grand Mosque In Mecca Receives 1st Batch Of Pilgrims As Hajj Begins

RIYADH, Jul 18 (NNN-SPA) – The first batch of pilgrims arrived yesterday, at the Grand Mosque in Mecca, to perform their first ritual for this year’s Hajj. The ritual was performed with huge preparations and precautionary measures against COVID-19, and there are different locations that can accommodate 11,000 pilgrims in…

Thailand Bans Gatherings As COVID-19 Cases, Deaths Hit New Record

BANGKOK, Jul 17 (NNN-TNA) – Thailand has imposed a nationwide ban on public gatherings and is considering more restrictions on movement, as authorities reported record numbers of new COVID-19 cases and deaths today, despite partial lockdowns in Bangkok and nine other provinces this week. The country’s COVID-19 task force reported…

Qatar Denies Reports In German Media

BERLIN, Jul 17 (NNN-QNA) – Qatar denied recent reports that appeared in the German media, urging them not to make hasty statements without first verifying the facts. Qatar responded to the false reports through a statement issued by its embassy in Berlin, seeking to explain the facts to the German…

India’s COVID-19 Tally Rises To 31,064,908

NEW DELHI, Jul 17 (NNN-PTI) – India’s COVID-19 tally rose to 31,064,908 today, as 38,079 new cases were registered during the past 24 hours, across the country, according to the federal health ministry’s latest data. Besides, 560 deaths were reported yesterday, taking the total death toll to 413,091. There are…

S.Korea Reports 1,455 More COVID-19 Cases, 176,500 In Total

SEOUL, Jul 17 (NNN-YONHAP) – South Korea reported 1,455 more cases of COVID-19 as of midnight, raising the total number of infections to 176,500. The daily caseload was slightly down from 1,536 in the previous day, but it stayed above 1,000 for the 11th straight day. The daily average caseload…

Sri Lankan Tea Exports Up 14 Percent In H1

COLOMBO, Jul 17 (NNN-XINHUA) – Sri Lanka’s tea export earnings, have risen 14 percent in the first half of 2021, compared to the same period last year, local media, citing leading tea broker, Asia Siyaka Commodities, reported yesterday. Sri Lanka’s tea export earnings in the first half of 2021 stood…

Maldives Vaccinates 50 Percent Of Eligible Population Against COVID-19

MALE, Jul 17 (NNN-PSM) – The Maldives has vaccinated half of its eligible population against COVID-19, local media reported here yesterday. Health Emergency Operation Centre’s (HEOC) Spokesperson, Dr. Fathimath Nazla Rafeeq, was quoted in state-owned News agency as saying that, half of the population above the age of 18, has…

Indian Gov’t Says COVID-19 Vaccine For 12-18 Age Group May Be Available Soon

NEW DELHI, Jul 17 (NNN-PTI) – India’s federal government, yesterday, informed the Delhi high court that, a vaccine against COVID-19 for people aged between 12 and 18 may soon be available, local media reported. The government, in an affidavit to the court, said, the vaccine was being developed by Gujarat-based…

Foreign Photo-Journalist Killed In Battle In S. Afghanistan

KANDAHAR, Jul 17 (NNN-XINHUA) – A foreign photo-journalist was killed, during clashes between Afghan government security forces and Taliban militants, in restive southern province of Kandahar early yesterday, a provincial government spokesman confirmed. “Danish Siddiqui, an Indian photographer of the Reuters news agency was killed, in Spin Boldak bordering district,…

One Dead In Chopper Crash In India

NEW DELHI, Jul 17 (NNN-PTI) – At least one person was killed and another injured, in a chopper crash, in India’s south-western state of Maharashtra, media reports said, yesterday. The crash reportedly took place in the state’s Jalgaon district. According to the media reports, police officials and local authorities had…