Foreign
Facebook blames ‘faulty’ configuration changes for global outage
October 5, 2021, 3:14 pm
NEW YORK – Facebook announced on early Tuesday that the global outage was caused by “faulty” configuration changes on the backbone routers and that there was no evidence that user data was compromised. “Our engineering teams have learned that configuration changes on the backbone routers… Read More
Facebook family of apps gradually returning to service
October 5, 2021, 1:20 pm
WASHINGTON – Facebook and its family of apps began to slowly return to service Monday following a six-hour worldwide outage whose cause remains unknown. Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp have resumed operations for some users, though the services appeared to be operating at a slower pace than… Read More
Fumio Kishida elected as Japanese PM to succeed Suga
October 4, 2021, 5:16 pm
TOKYO – Fumio Kishida, leader of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), was elected on Monday as the country's new prime minister to succeed Yoshihide Suga. As the ruling coalition led by the LDP controls both chambers, 64-year-old Kishida secured a majority of votes of both the House of… Read More
NoKor restores all inter-Korean communication lines
October 4, 2021, 11:47 am
PYONGYANG – North Korea decided to restore all communication lines with South Korea starting from 9 a.m. on Monday, according to the official Korean Central News Agency. The report said the decision was announced to follow the promise made by North Korean top leader Kim Jong Un in a speech last… Read More
Russia's royal family holds 1st wedding in more than 100 years
October 2, 2021, 4:24 pm
ST. PETERSBURG, Russia – A descendant of Russia's renowned House of Romanovs, Georgy Romanov, was married in St. Petersburg’s Saint Isaac’s Cathedral on Friday. Romanov's marriage to Italian writer Rebecca Bettarini was the first wedding of a royal family member in Russia in more than 100… Read More
California 1st US state with Covid-19 vax mandate for schools
October 2, 2021, 12:56 pm
LOS ANGELES – California became the first state in the United States to announce plans to require student vaccination for the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) by adding the vaccine to the list of vaccinations required for schools, such as the vaccines for measles, mumps, and rubella.… Read More
Oral antiviral drug reduces death risk by 50% in Covid-19 patient
October 2, 2021, 11:05 am
ANKARA – An oral antiviral treatment drug has reduced the risk of hospitalization or death by about 50 percent in coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) patients, Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics announced on Friday. The companies said their Phase 3 trials, which included 775 patients, yielded… Read More
NoKor test-fires new anti-aircraft missile
October 1, 2021, 6:39 pm
ANKARA – North Korea announced on Friday that it has successfully test-fired a new type of anti-aircraft missile capable of shooting down its air target. The country's Academy of Defense Science on Thursday conducted a test of the anti-aircraft missile it has recently developed, the state-run… Read More
Antibody levels reduce quickly even after 2 vaccine doses: study
September 29, 2021, 7:49 pm
STOCKHOLM – Antibody levels following coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) vaccination decrease more rapidly than previously believed, according to a study of staff at a hospital in Stockholm, Swedish Television reported on Tuesday. Seven months after receiving the second dose, the number of… Read More
Japan’s former foreign minister Kishida to become new premier
September 29, 2021, 4:40 pm
ANKARA – Japan’s former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida has been elected the new leader of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) on Wednesday, local media reported. He will succeed outgoing Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga. Kishida defeated Vaccination Minister Taro Kono in a runoff,… Read More
NoKor confirms test of newly developed 'hypersonic missile'
September 29, 2021, 3:41 pm
ANKARA – North Korea on Wednesday confirmed that it tested a newly developed hypersonic missile a day earlier that has "strategic significance" in bolstering its self-defense capabilities, state-run media said. In a statement, a defense official said that the Academy of Defense Science… Read More
Covid-19 cases worldwide down 10% in past week: WHO
September 29, 2021, 3:31 pm
GENEVA – Over 3.3 million novel coronavirus cases and more than 55,000 deaths were registered worldwide in the past week, the World Health Organization (WHO) said in a weekly bulletin released in Geneva early on Wednesday. According to the global organization, the number of new cases and… Read More
WHO chief calls for delinking travel from trade restrictions
September 29, 2021, 2:34 pm
GENEVA – The World Health Organization chief called Tuesday for “delinking travel from trade restrictions" during global public health emergencies, saying $2.4 billion vaccines are needed for those most at risk of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic. WHO Director-General Tedros… Read More
Japan to end Covid-19 emergency measures Sept. 30
September 28, 2021, 3:01 pm
TOKYO – The Japanese government will end the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) state of emergency covering Tokyo and 18 prefectures and a quasi-state of emergency for eight regions when they expire on Sept. 30, as the number of infections declined steadily, local media reported on Monday.… Read More
US pushes through with Covid-19 vax plan as booster shot approved
September 26, 2021, 2:42 pm
NEW YORK – The United States government keeps pushing through its vaccination plan with a booster shot finally approved this week, and financial support has been provided to toughen up some school districts that suffer from salary losses for defying local ban on mask mandates. According to The… Read More
US CDC panel endorses Pfizer booster shot for elderly
September 24, 2021, 10:50 am
WASHINGTON – A US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advisory panel on Thursday endorsed booster doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine for Americans aged 65 and older and some adults with certain high-risk conditions. The panel voted 15-0 to recommend a booster dose for… Read More
End economic sanctions on Afghanistan, China at G20
September 23, 2021, 8:18 pm
ANKARA – China has called for an end to economic sanctions on Afghanistan following the Taliban takeover. “Economic sanctions must be stopped. All kinds of unilateral sanctions or restrictions on Afghanistan should be lifted,” China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi told a G20 meeting hosted by… Read More
US FDA OKs Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine boosters for some Americans
September 23, 2021, 7:11 pm
WASHINGTON – The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) vaccine booster shots Wednesday for adults at high risk of severe illness due to the virus, and senior citizens. The FDA's authorization applies to people aged 62 and older,… Read More
Volcanic eruptions intensify on Spain's Canary Islands
September 23, 2021, 1:41 pm
MADRID – Eruptions from a volcanic grew in intensity Wednesday on the island of La Palma that has forced more than 6,000 people to be evacuated on the Canary Islands off southwest Spain. The Cumbre Vieja on one of the smallest islands in the region has active volcanic geography. Local government… Read More
Taliban ask to participate in UN General Assembly session
September 22, 2021, 8:47 pm
UNITED NATIONS – The Taliban has sent a letter to the United Nations requesting to attend General Assembly meetings and fielded spokesman Suhail Shaheen as a candidate for UN ambassador. Amid disputes over who will represent Afghanistan at the international body, the Taliban said in the letter… Read More
