Hard habit to shake: Dutch PM Rutte has to hold his hands up
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte had just gone on live TV to tell the country’s 17 million residents to stop shaking hands to help combat coronavirus when he immediately broke the new rule.
Baghdad’s booksellers won’t let coronavirus close them down
They survived censorship under Saddam Hussein and the years of violence that followed his downfall, so the booksellers of Baghdad are not too worried by coronavirus.
‘It’s a pain in the neck,’ Madrid parents say as schools shut over coronavirus
Parents across the Madrid region scrambled for ways to cope with a two-week shutdown of schools starting Wednesday in the hope of stemming the spread of coronavirus, while authorities prepared to carry out daily disinfection of the metro network.
Russia’s ruling party backs idea of allowing Putin to run again for president: RIA
Russia’s ruling United Russia party said on Tuesday it would back a constitutional amendment that would allow President Vladimir Putin to run again for president, the RIA news agency reported, a prospect Putin has previously played down.
Israel travel restrictions could ease when virus spreads locally
Orders for all visitors arriving in Israel to self-isolate for two weeks could be eased if the coronavirus outbreak begins to spread locally en masse, one of the country’s epidemic management team said on Tuesday.
Turkey’s Erdogan says U.S. softening stance on Patriot systems
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said that the United States was softening its stance on a potential sale of U.S. Patriot defense systems, adding that Washington had asked Ankara to guarantee it will not activate Russian S-400 defense systems.
We want to end up with no high-risk vendors in 5G network: UK government
Britain wants to end up with no “high-risk” telecommunications vendors, like China’s Huawei, involved in running its 5G networks, Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s spokesman said on Tuesday.
Spanish parliament rejects request to investigate King Juan Carlos
The Spanish parliament on Tuesday rejected for the second time in two years a request by several parties to open an investigation into the business activities of former King Juan Carlos.
Macron’s chief of staff working from home after possible virus contact
French President Emmanuel Macron’s chief of staff Patrick Strzoda was to work from home after coming into contact with a person who tested positive for coronavirus, the president’s office told Reuters on Tuesday.
Putin to address parliament after lawmaker proposes he run for president again: TASS
Russian President Vladimir Putin will address the lower house of parliament on Tuesday after a lawmaker proposed allowing him to run for president again despite a legal limit currently prohibiting that, the TASS news agency reported.
