US Senate approves bill to pressure China over Uighur rights

A vocational skills education center in Dabancheng, Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region WASHINGTON, May 15 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The US Senate approved legislation calling on President Donald Trump’s administration to toughen its response to China’s crackdown on its Uighur Muslim minority, the latest push in Washington to punish China as Trump blames Beijing…

Covid-19: New test kit developed in Singapore detects past infection within an hour

cPass, a rapid serology test for the coronavirus that can measure neutralising antibodies in an hour​​ SINGAPORE, May 15 (NNN-CNA) — A new COVID-19 test that can rapidly assess if a person has been previously infected with the coronavirus is now available to hospitals in Singapore. Launched on Friday, the cPass serology test detects antibodies –…

Typhoon forces 140,000 from homes in virus-hit Philippines

MANILA, May 15 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Over 140,000 people were forced into cramped shelters as a powerful typhoon hammered the Philippines on Friday, compounding the nation’s battle with the coronavirus pandemic. Typhoon Vongfong has dumped heavy rains since it roared ashore on Thursday, with hundreds of thousands of vulnerable people in…

Covid-19: New cases on US carrier despite extensive screening

WASHINGTON, May 15 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Five US sailors have been evacuated with coronavirus from an aircraft carrier despite extensive screening as the warship prepares its return to sea following a major outbreak, a US official confirmed. After testing positive but asymptomatic, the five spent two weeks in quarantine in Guam…

Brazil: State-owned Petrobras books steep loss amid ‘worst crisis in 100 years’

BRASILIA, May 15 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Brazil’s state-run oil company Petrobras reported a steep net loss for the first quarter of the year and warned more heavy losses were on the horizon because of the coronavirus pandemic. The company posted a net loss of 48.5 billion reals for the first three…

US blames Daesh for Kabul maternity attack, urges peace process

WASHINGTON, May 15 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The US negotiator on Afghanistan blamed the Daesh group Thursday for the shocking attack on a maternity hospital as he urged the government and Taliban to stick to a faltering peace process. Zalmay Khalilzad said the US government had assessed that the Daesh in Khorasan,…

Covid-19: Virus could infect more than 200 mn in Africa – WHO modelling

PARIS, May 15 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The new coronavirus could kill 150,000 people in Africa in a year unless urgent action is taken, according to a WHO modelling study that says nearly a quarter of a billion people will be infected. Authors of the research, published Friday in the journal BMJ…

Covid-19: South Korea reports 27 more cases, 11,018 in total

People wait to be tested for COVID-19 at Seongdong Community Health Center SEOUL, May 15 (NNN-Xinhua) — South Korea reported 27 more cases of the COVID-19 compared to 24 hours ago as of 0:00 a.m. Friday local time, raising the total number of infections to 11,018. The daily caseload hovered…

Brazilian president moves to limit public-sector liability over COVID-19

A man works at the construction site of a temporary hospital at Ibirapuera sports complex amid COVID-19 outbreak in Sao Paulo BRASILIA, May 15 (NNN-Xinhua) — Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro issued a provisional decree that seeks to limit public-sector liability for things that go wrong in the fight against the…

Pakistan calls for implementation of US-Taliban deal amid spike in violence

Afghan President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani ISLAMABAD, May 15 (NNN-Xinhua) — Pakistan on Thursday emphasized on the implementation of the agreement between the United States and the Taliban for Afghan peace, amid spike in violence in Afghanistan. “Pakistan believes that the U.S.-Taliban Peace Agreement has provided a window of opportunity to…