Minutes to touchdown: The moment a Belarusian dissident knew his time was up
VILNIUS — Ryanair Flight 4978 had already begun its descent into the Lithuanian capital when the pilot announced that the plane would be suddenly diverting to Minsk, capital of neighboring Belarus.
No one’s safe anymore: Japan’s Osaka city crumples under COVID-19 onslaught
OSAKA — Hospitals in Japan’s second largest city of Osaka are buckling under a huge wave of new coronavirus infections, running out of beds and ventilators as exhausted doctors warn of a “system collapse,” and advise against holding the Olympics this summer.
Belarus forces airliner to land and arrests opponent, sparking US and European outrage
MOSCOW — Belarusian authorities scrambled a fighter jet and flagged what turned out to be a false bomb alert to force a Ryanair plane to land on Sunday and then detained an opposition-minded journalist who was on board, drawing condemnation from Europe and the United States.
Wuhan lab staff sought hospital care before COVID-19 outbreak disclosed — WSJ
WASHINGTON — Three researchers from China’s Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) sought hospital care in November 2019, months before China disclosed the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday, citing a previously undisclosed US intelligence report.
Taiwan slams WHO’s ‘indifference’ after failing to get into key meeting
TAIPEI — Taiwan’s government slammed the World Health Organization’s (WHO) “indifference” to the health rights of Taiwanese people and for capitulating to China on Monday after failing to...
Israel-Hamas ceasefire holds, UN to launch Gaza aid appeal
JERUSALEM/GAZA — A ceasefire between Israel and Hamas held into a third day on Sunday as mediators spoke to all sides about extending the period of...
Israel’s Gaza challenge: Stopping metal tubes turning into rockets
THE ISRAEL-HAMAS conflict that ended with a cease-fire on Friday showed the Palestinian group’s ability to build an arsenal of home-made rockets largely with civilian materials and Iranian expertise, analysts and officials said, a feat it could likely replicate.
Indians turn to illegal clinics as coronavirus spreads to rural areas
AN INDIAN former hospital worker with no medical education is running a small unlicensed clinic, tending to patients with breathing difficulties and checking their oxygen levels as they lie on cots on the mud floor.
TikTok and geopolitics: how ‘digital nationalism’ threatens to entrench big tech
The massive digital platform market has until recently been dominated by a handful of US-based companies such as Facebook and Google. However, as foreign...
Fretting about COVID, most Japan firms say Olympics should be canceled or postponed
TOKYO — Nearly 70% of Japanese firms want the Tokyo Olympics either canceled or postponed, a Reuters survey found, underscoring concerns that the Games...
COVID fight could return ‘to square one’: experts sound vaccines alarm
LONDON — India’s export ban on coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) shots risks dragging the battle against the pandemic “back to square one” unless wealthy nations step in to plug a...
Israel-Hamas truce takes hold after 11 days of fighting
GAZA/JERUSALEM — An Egyptian-mediated truce between Israel and Hamas began on Friday, but Hamas warned it still had its “hands on the trigger” and demanded Israel end the...