China is imposing sanctions on several US individuals and organisations in response to recent US sanctions on Chinese officials in Hong Kong. Those targeted include former US Commerce Secretary, Wilbur Ross. The counter-sanctions come days before US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman is due to visit China. The US sanctions on Chinese officials in […]
Coronavirus pandemic Demonstrations have taken place in Australian cities against tight restrictions imposed to tackle a rise in Covid cases. Thousands gathered in Sydney, with smaller protests held in Melbourne and Brisbane. People chanted “freedom” as they marched through the centre of Sydney. Officers said they had made 57 arrests. Australian governments have re-imposed lockdowns […]
At least 110 people have been killed in landslides and flooding triggered by heavy rains in the western Indian state of Maharashtra. The rains overwhelmed hundreds of villages, sweeping away houses and leaving residents stranded. Rescue crews have been racing to evacuate survivors but many people are feared missing. The Indian military has been helping […]
Shares in Indian food delivery app Zomato have soared by more than 80% in their stock market debut. The listing was pushed forward by four days and comes as India’s stock market nears all-time highs. The stellar performance reflected strong investor interest in internet-based start-ups that have done well during the pandemic. In the run […]
President Xi Jinping has visited the politically troubled region of Tibet in the first official visit by a Chinese leader in 30 years. The president was in Tibet from Wednesday to Friday, but state media reported the visit after it ended. China is accused of suppressing cultural and religious freedom in the remote and mainly […]
Coronavirus pandemic China has rejected the next stage of a World Health Organization (WHO) plan to investigate the origins of the coronavirus pandemic. The WHO wants to audit laboratories in the area the virus was first identified. But Zeng Yixin, deputy health minister, said this showed “disrespect for common sense and arrogance toward science”. […]
The show director of the Olympics opening ceremony has been dismissed, one day before the event is due to be held. Footage of Kentaro Kobayashi from the 1990s recently emerged in which he appears to be making jokes about the Holocaust. Japan’s Olympic chief Seiko Hashimoto said the video ridiculed “painful facts of history”. The […]
India coronavirus lockdown Indians have expressed shock and anger after a junior health minister told parliament that no Covid deaths had been reported due to oxygen shortages. Hospitals across the country ran out of oxygen in April and May during a deadly second wave – there were daily reports of people dying from a […]
Coronavirus pandemic Anger is growing in Australia as 13 million people – about half the population – endure fresh lockdowns to quash Covid outbreaks. A third state went into lockdown on Tuesday. Stay-at-home orders are now in place in South Australia, Victoria and parts of New South Wales. Many people have expressed frustration at being […]
Coronavirus pandemic More than 4,300 people have died of the deadly “black fungus” in India in a growing epidemic that mainly affects Covid-19 patients. India has reported 45,374 cases of this rare and dangerous infection, called mucormycosis, Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya has said. It affects the nose, eyes and sometimes the brain, and usually […]
