Saudi grand mufti: Ramadan evening, Eid prayers to be done at home amid coronavirus
Saudi Arabia’s Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdulaziz Al al-Sheikh, the highest religious authority in the country, said that Muslim prayers during Ramadan and for the subsequent Eid al-Fitr feast should be performed at home if the coronavirus outbreak continues…
Britain expands COVID-19 testing programme, still more to do: health minister
Britain has expanded the number of people who are eligible to be tested for COVID-19 to include the police, fire service, judiciary and others, health minister Matt Hancock said on Friday, in part of its efforts to widen its testing programme.
We need to learn lessons of coronavirus spread: UK PM’s spokesman
Britain and other G7 countries discussed the need to learn the lessons of how the novel coronavirus came to spread throughout the world, a spokesman for Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Friday.
‘Please avoid going out,’ Japan’s Abe appeals as coronavirus crisis widens
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made a forceful appeal to the nation on Friday to stay indoors to avoid further coronavirus contagion, in his starkest remarks since the crisis began.
China says nearly 1,300 virus deaths not counted in Wuhan, cites early lapses
Nearly 1,300 people who died of the coronavirus in the Chinese city of Wuhan, or half the total, were not counted in death tolls because of lapses, state media said on Friday, but Beijing dismissed claims that there had been any kind of cover-up.
Chinese and Malaysian ships in South China Sea standoff: sources
A Chinese government survey ship is tagging an exploration vessel operated by Malaysia’s state oil company Petronas in disputed waters in the South China Sea, three regional security sources said on Friday.
Iran parades medical gear, not missiles on Army Day as coronavirus deaths hit 4,958
Iran on Friday paraded disinfection vehicles, mobile hospitals and other medical equipment to mark its Army Day as the country’s death toll from the coronavirus outbreak rose by 89 to 4,958.
U.N. says at least 32 people, mostly women and children, killed as insurgents, Myanmar military clash
A surge in fighting between the Myanmar military and insurgents has killed at least 32 people, mostly women and children, in the restive Rakhine and Chin states, the U.N. human rights office said on Friday, adding the military had destroyed homes and s…
In northern Spain, lamb farming feels chill winds of coronavirus
At this time of year, Miguel Angel Rivilla is usually swamped with work, selling his prized sheep to markets throughout Spain for “lechal” – a cherished dish of roasted, unweaned lamb popular at Easter and other times of celebration.
Factbox: Europe begins easing coronavirus lockdowns
Some European countries have announced plans to ease restrictions on social life, transport and cross-border travel imposed since mid-March to battle the spread of the novel coronavirus.
