United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was exposed to the coronavirus Tuesday by a U.N. official who already had COVID-19 and is isolating for the next few days, diplomatic sources said. Guterres, 72, has canceled his upcoming in-person engagements, sources told AFP. The U.N. chief was to be the guest of honor of the U.N. Correspondents […]
Olaf Scholz has been sworn in as Germany’s new chancellor, bringing to an end Angela Merkel’s historic 16 years as leader. He was voted in by the German parliament, where his three-party coalition has a substantial majority, and given a standing ovation. His centre-left Social Democrats will govern alongside the Greens and the business-friendly Free […]
Scientists in South Africa say the new and rapidly spreading omicron variant of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 is partly able to evade antibodies produced by either a previous infection or vaccination. The results were found in laboratory tests conducted at the Africa Health Research Institute in Durban on blood samples of 12 people who […]
Ethiopia has accused the United States of “perpetuating a destructive narrative” after Washington and its allies sounded the alarm over reports that the authorities were unlawfully detaining citizens on ethnic grounds. The US and other Western nations released a joint statement on Monday saying they were “profoundly concerned by recent reports of the Ethiopian government’s detention of […]
The United Arab Emirates announced all government entities will adopt a new work-week schedule consisting of four-and-a-half days with Friday afternoon, Saturday and Sunday forming the new weekend. The move, announced by state news agency WAM on Tuesday, will come into effect on January 1, 2022, making the working week more in line with Western […]
Existing vaccines should still protect people who contract the Omicron variant from severe Covid cases, a World Health Organization (WHO) official says. It comes as the first lab tests of the new variant in South Africa suggest it can partially evade the Pfizer jab. Researchers say there was a “very large drop” in how well […]
The President of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, Mr Mohamed Irfaan Ali, has pledged his country’s commitment to a “strategic engagement and partnership with Ghana” as the two countries work towards improving the lives of their citizens. President Ali, who was speaking at a State Dinner organised in honour of Ghana’s visiting Vice President, Dr […]
A Saudi man suspected of involvement in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi has been arrested in France, police say. Khaled Aedh Alotaibi was arrested at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris on Tuesday, a police source told the BBC. He is believed to be one of 26 Saudis wanted by Turkey over the killing. […]
Tyson Nuthu works in the outdoors industry in Nairobi and sees the presence of China everywhere. “Just look at all the construction projects, from Ngong Road to the western bypass. Everywhere you look, China is active here in Kenya,” he said. Kenya is along the path of Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative, which is financing […]
A Zimbabwe court has dropped a case against investigative journalist and government critic Hopewell Chin’ono, charged with inciting public violence last year for supporting banned demonstrations on Twitter. The outspoken, award-winning journalist has been detained three times and spent two months in prison since he backed anti-government protests in July 2020, when he was first […]
