Category: Global Politics

Coronavirus trial drug remdesivir’s maker aims for wide distribution: Gilead CEO

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Vials of investigational coronavirus disease (Covid-19) treatment drug remdesivir are capped at a Gilead Sciences facility in La Verne, California, US. (via REUTERS) COURTESY BY: https://www.hindustantimes.com/ Gilead Sciences which manufactures remdesivir, is focussed on making the experimental coronavirus drug accessible and affordable to as many people as possible once it is approved, Chief Executive Daniel O’Day said on Friday. Gilead has already said it will donate the first 1.5 million doses of remdesivir and O’Day told NBC’s “Today” show that the company understood its responsibility to make a difference during…

Donald Trump points to Wuhan lab as Covid-19 source, threatens new tariffs as punishment

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US President Donald Trump(Reuters photo)

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COURTESY BY : https://www.hindustantimes.com/ President Donald Trump on Thursday said the United States has intelligence that establishes a virology lab in Wuhan is the source of the pandemic and indicated new tariffs as his administration considers a range of punitive measures such as partly cancelling public debt and allowing victims to sue China. “Yes I have,” Trump told reporters when asked if he has seen intelligence that traces the epidemic’s origin to the Wuhan lab with a high degree of confidence. He did not share any evidence and when asked…

Armed protesters demand end to Covid-19 curbs in US state

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US President Donald Trump holds up a presidential proclamation declaring a “Older Americans Month 2020” during an event about senior citizens and the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in the East Room at the White House in Washington.(REUTERS) COURTESY BY: https://www.hindustantimes.com/ Hundred of protestors, some of them armed with guns, swarmed Michigan state’s assembly building in Lansing Thursday demanding removal of stay-at-home Covid-19 restrictions. Michigan is among the hardest hit by the virus with more than 3,700 fatalities till Thursday, and upwards of 41,000 infections. The state’s Democratic governor Gretchen Whitmer has…

Kuwait offers to evacuate 45,000 Indians who benefited from visa amnesty scheme

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Police and civil aviation personnel wearing protective face masks work at the Kuwait Airport as the repatriation process of Kuwait citizens continues, following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Kuwait City.(REUTERS) COURTESY BY: https://www.hindustantimes.com/ Kuwait on Friday offered to evacuate thousands of illegal Indian workers who benefited from a general amnesty, even as people familiar with developments said the two sides were in touch to resolve the issue. Kuwaiti ambassador Jassem Al-Najem highlighted his government’s efforts to evacuate “all illegal workers of different nationalities, including Indian nationals, who…

Canada bans assault-style weapons after mass shooting

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(AP file photo. Representative image )

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Courtesy by: https://www.hindustantimes.com/ Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Friday that Canada is banning the use and trade of assault-style weapons immediately. Trudeau cited numerous mass shootings in the country, including the killing of 22 people in Nova Scotia April 18 and 19. He announced the ban of over 1,500 models and variants of assault-style firearms, including the AR-15 and other weapons that have been used in a number of mass shootings in the United States “Canadians need more than thoughts and prayers,” Trudeau said. The Cabinet order doesn’t forbid owning…

US ‘hasn’t seen’ North Korean leader Kim Jong-un recently, Mike Pompeo

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COURTESY BY: https://www.bbc.com/news/ US officials “haven’t seen” North Korean leader Kim Jong-un recently and are watching reports about his health “closely”, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has said. He also expressed concern that the hermit state could be hit either by the coronavirus outbreak or a famine. Mr Kim, 36, last appeared in state media on 12 April, triggering speculation that he was seriously ill. But officials in South Korea later said such reports were not true. Kim Jong-un illness rumours denied amid intense speculation Who might lead N…

Pakistan has lowest Covid-19 mortality rate, says minister as country records highest single-day fatalities

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People wait to receive free food for Ramzan during Covid-19 lockdown, in Lahore on Wednesday. (AP Photo)

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COURTESY BY: https://www.hindustantimes.com/ With 26 fresh fatalities, Pakistan on Wednesday recorded the highest single-day jump in the number of deaths due to coronavirus disease Covid-19, health authorities said. Special Assistant to Prime Minister on National Security Moeed Yusuf told the media that besides the new 26 deaths, there were 44 infected people in critical condition, Pakistani media reported. However, he said the mortality rate was only 2.1 per cent in Pakistan as compared to around seven per cent in other countries. Meanwhile, the government has decided to bring back 7,500…

‘Major strategic achievement’: Xi Jinping hails China’s Covid-19 battle

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The Covid-19 pandemic continues its explosive growth overseas, Chinese President Xi Jinping said. (AP File Photo )

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COURTESY BY: https://www.hindustantimes.com/ Chinese President Xi Jinping has termed China’s battle against Covid-19 as a major strategic achievement, as the ruling Communist Party is all set to hold the postponed Parliament session on May 22 amid a steady decline in the coronavirus cases. China’s National Health Commission (NHC) on Thursday said the country reported only four new confirmed Covid-19 cases on Wednesday, taking the total number to 82,862, while no death due to the disease was registered. The virus has claimed 4,633 lives in the country. China’s arduous efforts to contain…

US finds tentative cure for Covid-19, hunts chutes for a vaccine

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A lab technician visually inspects a filled vial of investigational coronavirus disease treatment drug remdesivir at a Gilead Sciences facility in La Verne, California, US. (Gilead Sciences Inc/Handout via Reuters) COURTESY BY: https://www.hindustantimes.com/ A sliver of hope ran through a nation ravaged by a new virus and shuttered at home after a top US government scientist announced Wednesday that data from ongoing federal trials demonstrated that an antiviral drug can significantly shorten the duration of the illness and hasten recovery from coronavirus. News reports indicated the US Food and Drug…

PM Modi discusses coronavirus issue with Bangladesh counterpart

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PM Modi and Bangladesh PM spoke regarding efforts to contain the pandemic in the region. (Mohd Zakir/HT FILE PHOTO) COURTESY BY: https://www.hindustantimes.com/ Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday discussed collaboration in the fight against Covid-19 and the cross-border movement of essential items amid the lockdown in both countries. Modi, who spoke on the phone with Hasina, assured her of India’s readiness to help Bangladesh in containing the spread of Covid-19 and mitigating the health and economic impact of the pandemic, according to an official…