world
NewsANICovid-19 variant B.1.617 first found in India, detected in 44 countries, says WHO
Geneva [Switzerland], May 12 (ANI): The World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday informed that the B.1.617 variant of Covid-19, first found in India in October last year, had been detected in sequences uploaded "from 44 countries in all six WHO regions".
PoliticsThe Guardian‘We must speak the truth’: Liz Cheney defiant ahead of ouster from top Republican job
‘We must speak the truth’: Liz Cheney defiant ahead of ouster from top Republican job. The Wyoming representative stands by her opposition to Trump’s election lies as she prepares to be removed from No 3 House role
NewsANIUN states, civil society organisations to discuss human rights situation in Xinjiang today
New York [US], May 12 (ANI): A broad coalition of UN member states and civil society organizations (CSO) is set to hold an online event on Wednesday to raise awareness and discuss the human rights situation prevailing in China Xinjiang province.
- NewsAssociated Press
Australian court upholds laws against foreign interference
A Chinese-born political adviser on Wednesday lost his challenge in Australia’s highest court against laws banning covert foreign interference in domestic politics. John Shi Sheng Zhang also lost his High Court challenge to the validity of search warrants executed by police at his Sydney home and offices last year as part of an investigation into illegal foreign interference. Zhang was an adviser to New South Wales state lawmaker Shaoquett Moselmane, whose membership in the opposition Labor Party was suspended after he was also the target of police raids.
- NewsAssociated Press
Top Asian News 2:48 a.m. GMT
Scores of dead bodies have been found floating down the Ganges River in eastern India as the country battles a ferocious surge in coronavirus infections. Authorities said Tuesday they haven't yet determined the cause of death.
NewsANI'No sign' of end to brutal crackdown in Myanmar: UN
Geneva [Switzerland], May 12 (ANI): One hundred days since the Myanmar military coup, the "brutal" repression of protesters has continued, despite all international efforts to end the violence, the UN rights office (OHCHR) said on Tuesday (local time).
NewsANIGlobal sales of Celltrion's COVID-19 antibody-drug Regkirona begin
Seoul [South Korea], May 12 (ANI/Global Economic): Worldwide sales of Regkirona (active ingredient: regdanvimab), a COVID-19 antibody drug developed by South Korean biopharmaceutical company Celltrion Inc, has begun.
NewsAssociated PressSuit: Workers lured from India paid $1.20 per hour for years
FBI agents were at a large Hindu temple in New Jersey on Tuesday as a new lawsuit claimed it was built by workers from marginalized communities in India who were lured to the U.S. and forced to work long hours for just a few dollars per day. The lawsuit accuses the leaders of the Hindu organization known as Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha, or BAPS, of human trafficking and wage law violations. An FBI spokesperson confirmed that agents were at the temple on “court-authorized law enforcement activity,” but wouldn't elaborate.
NewsAssociated PressIsrael, Hamas escalate heavy fighting with no end in sight
Israel stepped up its attacks on the Gaza Strip, flattening a high-rise building used by the Hamas militant group and killing at least three militants in their hideouts on Tuesday as Palestinian rockets rained down almost nonstop on parts of Israel. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to expand the offensive, while Gaza militants unleashed a fierce late-night barrage of rockets that set off air-raid sirens and explosions throughout the densely populated Tel Aviv metropolitan area. Five Israelis, including three women and a child, were killed by rocket fire Tuesday and early Wednesday, and dozens of people wounded.
BusinessANIGS25 vs CU to compete for 'K convenience store' position; Mongolia's first fierce battlefield abroad
Seoul [South Korea], May 12 (ANI/Global Economic): GS25 chose Mongolia as the second overseas target market after Vietnam. It is expected to establish a base in Mongolia and open the first store in the first half of this year. The first store will be located in Ulaanbaatar, the capital city where the young population is concentrated.
NewsANIConsignment of medical equipment from South Korea reaches India
New Delhi [India], May 12 (ANI): A consignment of medical equipment including 200 oxygen concentrators from South Korea reached India as it battles against COVID-19 crisis.
NewsAssociated PressJudge dismisses NRA bankruptcy case in blow to gun group
A federal judge dismissed the National Rifle Association’s bankruptcy case Tuesday, leaving the powerful gun-rights group to face a New York state lawsuit that accuses it of financial abuses and aims to put it out of business. The judge was tasked with deciding whether the NRA should be allowed to incorporate in Texas instead of New York, where the state is suing in an effort to disband the group. Judge Harlin Hale said in a written order that he was dismissing the case because he found the bankruptcy was not filed in good faith.
NewsReutersSuez Canal chief says southern stretch to be expanded
CAIRO (Reuters) -The Suez Canal Authority (SCA) plans to expand and deepen the southern stretch of the waterway where a container ship became jammed and blocked traffic for six days in March, Chairman Osama Rabie said in a televised address on Tuesday. Rabie presented the plan at an event attended by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who indicated that the project should be completed in 24 months at most. The SCA plans to widen the southernmost 30-kilometre (18-mile) stretch of the waterway between the city of Suez and the Bitter Lakes area by 40 metres (130 feet) eastwards, Rabie said.
NewsANIDoubts emerge over Xi Jinping's chances of securing 3rd term as Chinese President
Beijing [China], May 12 (ANI): As Chinese President Xi Jinping's hard-line policies beyond Chinese shores are squandering Beijing's soft power, doubts are emerging over Xi securing an unprecedented third term.
TechnologyANISamsung Electronics develops CXL-based next-generation DRAM memory technology for first time in industry
Seoul [South Korea], May 12 (ANI/Global Economic): Samsung Electronics announced Tuesday that it has developed DRAM memory technology based on the next-generation interface "Compute Express Link (CXL)" for the first time in the industry.
NewsANIFamilies of Uyghur editors slam China over documentary 'grossly misrepresenting' them
Beijing [China], May 12 (ANI): Families of former Uyghur textbook editors, who have been accused of incorporating ethnically charged and separatist views into classroom literature, say that a pro-Beijing media outlet's recent documentary grossly misrepresents them.
NewsANIChina blames US troop withdrawal for surge of attacks in Afghanistan
Beijing [China], May 12 (ANI): China has blamed the abrupt withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan for a surge of attacks in the country, days after a series of explosions in Kabul killed over 60 people, mostly girl students.
NewsThe GuardianLA protester accuses uncle, an LAPD officer, of ordering projectiles fired on him
LA protester accuses uncle, an LAPD officer, of ordering projectiles fired on himAsim Jamal Shakir Jr is suing the Los Angeles police department after he was injured during a George Floyd demonstration last May Asim Jamal Shakir Jr was shot with a projectile when he joined protests in downtown Los Angeles on 29 May 2020. Photograph: Courtesy the Shakir family
NewsANIIsrael-Palestine conflict: Death toll in Gaza rises to 32, explosions heard in Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv [Israel], May 12 (ANI): As hostilities between Israel and Palestine continue to escalate, rocket sirens are going off across southern and central Israel while dozens of explosions have also been reported.
NewsANIBlinken speaks to Israel FM, discusses violence in Jerusalem
Washington [US], May 12 (ANI): US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday (local time) spoke to Israel's Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi and expressed his concerns over the escalating violence between Israel and Palestine, including the rocket attacks by the latter.
NewsANIUS expresses 'serious' concern over Israel-Palestine conflict, calls for de-escalation
Washington [US], May 12 (ANI): The US White House on Tuesday (local time) has expressed serious concern over the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine, calling for de-escalation of tensions between both countries by establishing a two-state solution.
NewsAssociated PressGas stations report shortages as pipeline shutdown drags on
More than 1,000 gas stations in the Southeast reported running out of fuel, primarily because of what analysts say is unwarranted panic-buying among drivers, as the shutdown of a major pipeline by a gang of hackers entered its fifth day Tuesday. The Colonial Pipeline, the biggest fuel pipeline in the U.S., delivering about 45% of what is consumed on the East Coast, was hit on Friday with a cyberattack by hackers who lock up computer systems and demand a ransom to release them. A large part of the pipeline resumed operations manually late Monday, and Colonial anticipates restarting most of its operations by the end of the week, U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said.
NewsReutersChina professor calls for million-yuan reward to boost birth rates
A Chinese professor has urged the government to offer parents 1 million yuan ($156,000) for each newborn child in a bid to shore up the country's declining birth rate, sparking a debate on social media about the soaring costs of raising children. China's population rose by its slowest rate in decades from 2010-2020, the country's latest census showed, raising fears that the country's dwindling workforce will be unable to support an increasingly elderly population. Liang Jianzhang, professor at Peking University's School of Economics and also founder of travel service provider Ctrip, said in a video posted on his Weibo social media channel that it would cost 10% of China's GDP to raise birth rates from the current 1.3 to the replacement level of 2.1.
PoliticsAssociated PressDemocrats press for broader voter access as GOP resists
Republicans in the U.S. Senate mounted an aggressive case Tuesday against Democrats' sweeping election and voter-access legislation, pushing to roll back proposals for automatic registration, 24-hour ballot drop boxes and other changes in an increasingly charged national debate. At the end of a long, contentious day, the Rules Committee deadlocked 9-9 over advancing the bill to the full Senate in its current form. Just Tuesday, the Arizona Legislature sent the governor a bill that would make it easier to purge infrequent voters from a list of those who automatically get mail-in ballots, the latest battleground state to push through changes likely to take months or years to finally settle in court.
NewsANIIsrael, Palestinian supporters clash near Israeli consulate in New York
New York [US], May 12 (ANI/Sputnik): At least a thousand pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian protesters clashed at a demonstration near the Israeli consulate in New York City over the recent escalation of violence in the Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem, a Sputnik correspondent reported from the scene.
