Virus could bankrupt most airlines by end of May
(Bloomberg): The coronavirus pandemic will bankrupt most airlines worldwide by the end of May unless governments and the industry take coordinated steps to avoid such a situation, an aviation…
France says coronavirus situation ‘deteriorating very fast’
(AFP) - The coronavirus outbreak in France is "very worrying" and "deteriorating very fast", the head of the country's health service said Monday.
"The number of cases double every three days,"…
Coronavirus: Isolation for over-70s ‘within weeks’
(BBC) - Action to isolate the UK's over-70s for an extended period to shield them from coronavirus is planned in the coming weeks, Health Secretary Matt Hancock has confirmed.
He told Sky News…
US: Trump declares coronavirus national emergency
(CNA) - President Donald Trump declared a national emergency on Friday (Mar 13) in what critics say was a long-delayed admission of the gravity of the coronavirus crisis paralyzing the United…
COVID-19: Governments around the world shut more borders as the number of global cases crosses 150,000
(TheStar) - Governments around the world on Saturday shut more borders, as US President Donald Trump said he had taken a coronavirus test and the number of global cases crossed 150,000.
France,…
Asian stocks in decline
(Al Jazeera) - The roller coaster ride continues for Asian stock markets. It comes after a bad day on Wall Street and an announcement by US President Donald Trump, shutting down travel to and from…
Wall Street plummets, suffers worst day since 1987
(NST) - Wall Street tanked on Thursday, slamming the book on the longest-ever US bull market after new travel restrictions to curb the Covid-19 coronavirus spread spooked investors and rattled…
Coronavirus: Duterte announces lockdown of entire Metro Manila
(SCMP) - President Rodrigo Duterte has announced a month-long lockdown of the whole of Metro Manila as the Philippines looks to contain the spread of Covid-19, adding that he might call on China…
Every government for itself? Virus poses difficult dilemmas
With disparate and at times conflicting responses to the deadly coronavirus outbreak, governments across the globe are abandoning any pretence of joint action and instead putting their own health,…
US military may have brought virus to Wuhan, tweets China
A spokesman for China's Foreign Ministry suggested on Thursday (March 12) that the US military might have brought the coronavirus to the Chinese city of Wuhan, which has been hardest hit by the…
Iran says it has asked IMF for $5 billion emergency funding to fight coronavirus
(Reuters) - Iran has asked the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for emergency funding to help it fight the coronavirus outbreak, which has hit the Islamic Republic hard, Foreign Minister Mohammad…
WHO chief: China’s experience in forcing down Covid-19 cases “impressive”
(TheStar) - The chief of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday that Covid-19 cases in China have been in significant decline, following the country's "impressive" efforts in…
Pakistan passes child abuse law after girl’s rape and murder
(FMT) - Pakistan’s parliament passed a new law against child abuse on Wednesday, two years after the rape and murder of a 7-year-old girl that shocked the country.
Pakistan’s first national…
BREAKING: WHO declares pandemic over coronavirus
(Al Jazeera) - The World Health Organization has declared the worldwide outbreak of the new coronavirus a pandemic, with more than 118,000 cases in 114 countries and 4,291 deaths. "We have called…
Most people will get the coronavirus, aim is to slow its spread – Merkel
(Reuters) - Up to 70% of the population is likely to be infected with the coronavirus that is currently spreading around the world, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said, adding that since there…
COVID-19: All of Italy on total lockdown
(NST) - The whole of Italy will be placed under lockdown until next month, Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced on Monday, in an unprecedented new attempt to beat the Covid-19 coronavirus in…
Hysteria’ as stock markets plunge over oil, Covid-19
(NST) - World oil prices crashed on Monday, fuelling a vicious selloff on stock markets which were already buckling from the spreading Covid-19 coronavirus outbreak.
Stocks tanked as the global…
Quarter of Italians on lockdown as virus sweeps globe
(MalayMail) - A quarter of Italy's population was in lockdown yesterday as the government announced a spike in deaths, with infections soaring past 7,000, overtaking South Korea as the country…
Philippine clashes leave 14 militants, 4 soldiers dead
(TheStar) - Philippine troops have killed at least 14 Muslim militants aligned with the Islamic State group in a weeklong offensive in a southern province that also left four soldiers dead, a…
Saudi crackdown widens amid reports of further arrests of royals
(Al Jazeera) - A fourth senior prince is reported to have been detained in Saudi Arabia. US media reports say the former head of army intelligence, Prince Nayef bin Ahmed, is among those now being…
Coronavirus: New York declares state of emergency as contagion spreads
(SCMP) - Two more people succumbed to the novel coronavirus in Washington state, officials said, bringing the United States toll to 19, while the number of confirmed cases in New York rose to 89…
Hotel used as Covid-19 quarantine facility collapses in China
(TheSunDaily) - More than 40 people have been rescued following the collapse of a hotel used as a coronavirus quarantine facility in eastern China on Saturday, state media reported.
Officials…
Thailand’s Songkran festival events cancelled to avoid mass gatherings on Covid-19 spread
(TheStar) - Thailand's annual Songkran festival to be held in mid-April is appearing to be a quiet one as event organisers cancel several events to avoid mass gatherings and the spread of the…
Coronavirus: vaccines ‘on track for emergency use’ in April
(SCMP) - China says research on coronavirus vaccines is well under way, and some will be available for emergency and clinical research use next month.
Zheng Zhongwei, director of the National…
India Up for Sale as Modi Offers National Icons to Plug Deficit
(Bloomberg) - After years of small divestments, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched India’s biggest-ever asset sale, a $29 billion privatization drive that would help prop up the economy but…
Dubai’s ruler abducted daughters and threatened former wife, UK judge rules
(Reuters) - Dubai’s ruler ordered the abduction of two daughters and orchestrated a campaign of intimidation against his former wife, a British judge has ruled, in what is likely to be a major…
California declares emergency over coronavirus as death toll rises in U.S.
(Reuters) - The U.S. death toll from coronavirus infections rose to 11 on Wednesday as new cases emerged around New York City and Los Angeles, while Seattle-area health officials discouraged…
Panic buying over Covid-19 reported worldwide
(NST) - Shelves are being stripped bare of toilet rolls, hand sanitiser and surgical masks everywhere from Japan to France to the United States as panic buying criss-crosses the globe with the…
Chinese cybersecurity company accuses CIA of 11-year-long hacking campaign
(Reuters) - Chinese anti virus firm Qihoo 360 said CIA hackers have spent more than a decade breaking into the Chinese airline industry and other targets, a blunt allegation of American espionage…
Coronavirus: Iran temporarily frees 54,000 prisoners to combat spread
Iran has temporarily released more than 54,000 prisoners in an effort to combat the spread of the new coronavirus disease in crowded jails.
(BBC) - Judiciary spokesman Gholamhossein Esmaili told…