EU pushed to debate Covid-19 vaccine patent waiver after US U-turn

The leaders of the European Union are to discuss waiving intellectual property protections for Covid-19 vaccines this week, after the United States shifted position on the policy that could allow many poorer countries to produce their own vaccines.

India accounts for 46% of world’s new COVID-19 cases, quarter of deaths

India accounted for 46% of the new COVID-19 cases recorded worldwide last week and one in four of deaths, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Wednesday.

Pentagon tracking Chinese rocket debris making ‘uncontrolled reentry’ from orbit

The US military is tracking the remnants of a Chinese rocket as large pieces of the craft race back to Earth at thousands of miles per hour, making an uncontrolled reentry after the first launch for Beijing’s new space station.

Germany bans Ansaar International, raids Islamist group’s premises

German authorities raided the premises of Ansaar International across the country on Wednesday after Interior Minister Horst Seehofer announced a ban on the Islamist organisation and its sub-groups.

Taliban launches huge Afghan offensive after deadline for US pullout

Afghan security forces fought back a huge Taliban offensive in southern Helmand province in the last 24 hours, officials and residents said on Tuesday, as militants launched assaults around the country following a missed US deadline to withdraw troops.

India’s coronavirus caseload hits 20 million

India’s overall Covid-19 caseload crossed the 20-million mark on Tuesday, making it the second country after the United States to pass the grim milestone.

Bill and Melinda Gates to divorce

Billionaires Bill and Melinda Gates, co-founders of one of the world’s largest private charitable foundations, filed for divorce on Monday after 27 years of marriage.

India’s vaccine, oxygen crisis deepens as caseload nears 20 million

India’s cumulative coronavirus case count neared 20 million on Monday, even as hospitals continued to send distress messages for emergency oxygen supplies and a top jab-maker said the country may face a vaccine crunch for the next two to three months.

Israel’s state comptroller to open special probe into stampede deaths

Israel’s state comptroller wants to look into the circumstances surrounding the deaths of 45 people in a stampede at a religious festival last week, in addition to an already ongoing police investigation, the Haaretz newspaper reported on Monday.

India’s opposition sees hope for future in Modi’s election defeat

Indian opposition parties and political commentators cheered the election victory of a regional leader over Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling party in a big battleground state as a sign his populist sway could be checked.

India hits new record as Covid deaths top 3,000 for fourth day in row

India saw its deadliest day of the pandemic yet with 3,689 deaths reported in the last 24 hours, as the caseload surged to 19.5 million with 392,488 fresh infections, government data showed Sunday.

N.Korea accuses Biden of pursuing hostile policy, warns of reprisal

North Korea on Sunday accused US President Joe Biden of pursuing a hostile policy, dismissing “spurious” American diplomacy and warning of a response.

Taliban warn to ‘take action’ against US troops in Afghanistan

With Former President Donald Trump’s deadline for withdrawal from Afghanistan passed, the Taliban have warned that they may “take action” against US forces before President Joe Biden’s September 11 pullout date.

Significant increase in violence in Afghanistan

Despite ongoing peace talks, violence in Afghanistan has increased in the first three months of the year, according to a US government watchdog report published on Friday.

45 crushed to death at Israeli religious festival

At least 45 people were crushed to death overnight on Friday at an overcrowded religious festival in Israel, with some asphyxiated or trampled victims going unnoticed until the PA system sounded an appeal to disperse.

India’s vaccine drive crumbles: Daily virus cases near 400,000

India registered 386,452 new coronavirus cases on Friday, yet another global record for infections in a single day, even as the country’s new round of vaccinations appeared uncertain, with many states citing lack of doses.

Millions vote as deaths hit record high in India

Millions voted in the final phase of a marathon election in India’s West Bengal on Thursday, despite a record-breaking spike in Covid-19 infections and deaths that has devastated the country.

Brazil nears 400,000 Covid-19 deaths

Brazil is on the verge of registering 400,000 coronavirus deaths this week, after the Health Ministry on Wednesday reported 3,163 new COVID-19 deaths in 24 hours, bringing the official death toll to 398,185.

Trump slams Giuliani raid as ‘very, very unfair’

Former US president Donald Trump complained Thursday that an FBI raid on the New York apartment of his ex-personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani was “so unfair.” Federal investigators with search warrants combed Giuliani’s Manhattan residence and a separate office on Wednesday, seizing electronic devices as part of a probe into his dealings in Ukraine.

Medical supplies flow into India as COVID-19 deaths near 200,000

Vital medical supplies poured into India on Tuesday as hospitals starved of life-saving oxygen and beds turned away coronavirus patients, while a surge in infections pushed the death toll towards 200,000.

Rebel group seizes military outpost in Myanmar

Rebel fighters of the Karen ethnic minority have attacked an outpost of the Myanmar military near the border with Thailand, a spokesperson of the Karen National Union (KNU) rebel group told dpa on Tuesday.

Bangladesh rescues 30 Rohingya adrift for two days

The Bangladesh coastguard on Tuesday rescued 30 Rohingya refugees adrift in the Bay of Bengal for two days after they were attacked by pirates, an official said.

Time running out for missing Indonesian submarine

Rescue teams were battling against time on Friday to find a missing Indonesian Navy submarine lost in the Bali Sea with 53 crew, which would be rapidly running out of oxygen if not already crushed by water pressure.

New malaria vaccine shows promise in trial

A potential new malaria vaccine has proved highly effective in a trial in babies in Africa, pointing to it one day possibly helping reduce the death toll from the mosquito-born disease that kills up to half a million young children a year.

India’s hospital systems buckle under Covid surge

Hospitals in India launched desperate appeals for oxygen on Friday as the nation’s Covid crisis spiralled.

India posts world record COVID cases with oxygen running out

India recorded the world’s highest daily tally of 314,835 COVID-19 infections on Thursday as a second wave of the pandemic raised new fears about the ability of crumbling health services to cope.

NASA extracts breathable oxygen from thin Martian air

NASA has logged another extraterrestrial first on its latest mission to Mars: converting carbon dioxide from the Martian atmosphere into pure, breathable oxygen.

Biden opens global climate summit with emissions pledge

President Joe Biden pledged on Thursday to cut US greenhouse gas emissions in half by the end of the decade as he opened an online summit of 40 world leaders on climate change.

Oxygen leak kills 22 in Indian hospital

At least 22 patients died on Wednesday in a hospital in western India after a disruption to their oxygen supply caused by a leaking tank, the health minister said, as a nationwide surge in coronavirus cases soaks up supplies of the crucial gas.

Islamists call halt to Pakistan protest

A banned Pakistani Islamist group called an end to violent nationwide anti-France protests on Tuesday, after the government called a parliamentary vote on whether to expel the French ambassador and said it would halt criminal cases against the group’s members.