The US commander of Operation Inherent Resolve hopes allied forces will return to Iraq once the COVID-19 crisis subsides.

The Thai Airways International union has made clear its stance against privatisation and spinning off potentially profitable units as part of a rescue plan for the ailing national carrier.

MULTAN: The LPG Industries Association Pakistan has demanded a bailout package in the budget 2020-2021 so that the industry could survive in the most effective way.Talking to journalists here on Friday, LPGIAP chairman Irfan Khokhar said that the budget proposals had been dispatched to Prime...

FAISALABAD: Despite the lockdown, the GDP of Faisalabad is expected to grow from 1.3 to 2.2 per cent. This was said by National Assembly Standing Committee on Finance, Revenue and Economic Affairs Chairman Faizullah Kamoka. He was addressing a virtual discussion on Local Economic Development of...

PESHAWAR: CM Mahmood Khan has directed the officials concerned to finalise all arrangements for a formal groundbreaking of Rashakai Economic Zone.He was chairing a meeting held here on Friday to review progress on Rashakai and Hattar Economic Zones projects, said an official handout. Besides...

Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing’s core business has been profitable, president Jean Liu Qing said for the first time, as ride orders in its domestic market recover from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.In a rare interview, Liu told the CNBC that Didi’s core business has been profitable, without providing specific figures or explaining how or when the company had measured its profitability. The company has no plans for job cuts or raising capital, Liu said in the interview that…

Taiwan will gradually ease restrictions on travel and sporting activities, with the island’s health minister saying efforts to control the coronavirus were paying off.The island – home to 23 million people – had reported just 440 cases and six deaths from Covid-19 as of Thursday, with no local transmission for close to a month.Health Minister Chen Shih-chung said that with very few new cases among people returning to the island from elsewhere, the authorities would allow Taiwanese stranded in…

Chinese researchers have found Covid-19 in the sperm of a small number of men, raising the possibility that the virus could be spread via sex.The study by physicians at China’s Shangqiu Municipal Hospital looked at only 38 men at the hospital who had tested positive with disease, and of that already small group found that a minority – only six – were found to have SARS-CoV-2 in their semen.Eyes are ‘important route’ for coronavirus into body, Hong Kong experts find“The virus responsible for…

The idea of aircraft being powered by plasma drives might sound like something from a science fiction film, but a group of Chinese scientists has developed a prototype that might one day make it a reality.The team, from the Institute of Technological Sciences at Wuhan University, said in a paper published on Tuesday that they had developed a prototype of a plasma jet device capable of lifting a 1kg (2.2lb) steel ball over a 24mm (one inch) diameter quartz tube.While that might not sound like…

Beijing has kicked off a campaign to help graduates entering the labour market as the country faces growing pressure to reboot the sagging economy and tackle unemployment.Ten initiatives were announced to find jobs for this year’s 8.74 million new graduates in an online launch on Wednesday by officials from the labour, education, human resources, and industry and information technology ministries.The “100-day” campaign – highlighting the urgency for young people to find work – includes more…

As many as 44 million people in Africa could be infected with Covid-19 in the first year of the pandemic if containment measures fail – causing 83,000 to 190,000 deaths – according to modelling by the World Health Organisation, reflecting fears of a potential widening crisis on the continent.The study, released on Thursday by WHO Africa, looked at 47 countries with a combined population of 1 billion people and suggested smaller countries alongside Algeria, South Africa and Cameroon were at a…

Tensions are expected to rise in the South China Sea after Beijing’s annual summer ban on fishing in the disputed waters drew protests from rival claimants.China said it would prohibit fishing activities in the waters Beijing has claimed above the 12th parallel – including areas near the Scarborough Shoal, the Paracel Islands, and the Gulf of Tonkin – to conserve stocks.The ban, which came into effect from noon on May 1 runs until August 16 and China’s coastguard has promised to take the …

For years, Western companies have struggled to profit from a Chinese consumer market that thrives on cheap knock-offs of iconic brands. But that frustration is now turning into optimism, as local courts begin to stamp out thieves and cheats, lawyers say.More companies are filing intellectual property (IP) lawsuits amid a shift in attitude towards protecting original ideas, trademarks and patents, according to official data. The rush has accelerated after the phase-one trade deal in the US-China…

Help is at hand for parents struggling to explain the coronavirus pandemic and ease their children’s anxieties, with a number of books available for a range of age groups.The latest in the genre is The Big Thing , by Americans Angela Meng and Alexander Friedman, a former chief financial officer at the Gates Foundation. The book is available in English, Chinese and Spanish – with translators working on more language editions – and proceeds of e-book and print sales will go to Covid-19 charities…

A city in China’s northeastern province of Jilin has upgraded its Covid-19 risk level from low to medium following a new case of the disease, the provincial authorities announced on Saturday morning.It came just two days after China’s government declared the whole country was low-risk after the number of new cases dropped to almost zero and no deaths were recorded for more than three weeks.On Friday the State Council issued a notice allowing shopping malls, supermarkets, hotels and restaurants…

The United States has tightened visa rules for Chinese journalists as the tit-for-tat war on the media between the two sides escalated.The rules, which will take effect on Monday, limit visas for Chinese passport holders to 90 days with the option for an extension, the US Department for Homeland Security said on Friday.Journalists with passports from Hong Kong or Macau will not be affected.“The department is issuing this rule to address the actions of the PRC [People’s Republic of China]…

Legal proceedings have been launched in Switzerland against Britain’s Prince Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah, a newspaper reported on Thursday, over money they were said to still owe on a luxury chalet.Queen Elizabeth’s second son and Sarah, who remain close despite their 1996 divorce, bought the plush holiday home in the Verbier ski resort in southwest Switzerland in 2014 for 22 million Swiss francs (US$21.7 million).The wooden chalet has seven bedrooms, an indoor swimming pool and a sauna, Le…

This story is published in a content partnership with POLITICO. It was originally reported by Kyle Cheney and Josh Gerstein on politico.com on May 7, 2020.The US Justice Department has abandoned its prosecution of President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser Michael Flynn, throwing in the towel on one of the most prominent cases brought by Special Counsel Robert Mueller.Flynn pleaded guilty in 2017 to lying to the FBI about his dealings with the Russian ambassador to the US.But…

Germany’s defence ministry and BND foreign spy agency have privately cast doubt on American claims that the coronavirus pandemic originated in a Chinese lab, media reported on Friday.An internal memo prepared for Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer “classifies the American claims as a calculated attempt to distract” from Washington’s own failings, Der Spiegel reported.US President Donald Trump is attempting “to distract from his own mistakes and direct Americans’ anger at China”,…

It took just one month for the labour market in the world’s largest economy to capsize. It will take longer for the damage to be fully realised.In the harshest downturn for American workers in history, employers cut an unprecedented 20.5 million jobs in April, tripling the unemployment rate to 14.7 per cent, the highest since the Great Depression era of the 1930s. And it’s only set to worsen in May, as cuts spread further into white-collar work.“It’s devastating,” said Ryan Sweet, head of…

South African Fredie Blom celebrated his 116th birthday on Friday unfazed by the coronavirus crisis, over 100 years since the Spanish flu pandemic killed his sister.“I have lived this long because of God’s grace,” said Blom, possibly one of the oldest men in the world.Lighting a cigarette, he recalled the 1918 pandemic that left tens of millions dead worldwide including his sister.Blom was born in 1904 in the rural town of Adelaide, tucked near the Great Winterberg mountain range of South…

It has not got much attention with the world focused on coronavirus, but deforestation has surged in the Amazon rainforest this year, raising fears of a repeat of last year’s record-breaking devastation – or worse.Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon hit a new high in the first four months of the year, according to data released Friday by Brazil’s National Space Research Institute (INPE), which uses satellite images to track the destruction.A total of 1,202 square kilometres of forest – an…

US Vice-President Mike Pence’s press secretary has the coronavirus, making her the second person who works at the White House complex known to test positive for the virus this week.President Donald Trump, who publicly identified the affected Pence aide on Friday, said he was “not worried” about the virus spreading in the White House. Nonetheless, officials said they were stepping up safety protocols for the complex.US reversal scuppers UN vote on global coronavirus ceasefirePence spokeswoman…

In the seven years that Guangzhou native Grace Hexiaoya has called Spain her home, she has mastered the language, become enamoured with the weather and developed a soft spot for all the friendly people that she has met. She likes it in Madrid, where she works behind the counter at the I Love Dulces corner shop and confectionery store. Hers is one of the many Asian faces that can be seen running the Spanish capital’s vital food shops, even as the country – one of Europe’s hardest-hit by the…

From resounding applause to ostracisation and isolation.That is essentially the journey Lt. Cmdr. Robert Embleton, who served 34 years in Britain’s Royal Navy, took by ambulance when discharged from Derriford Hospital in Plymouth, southwestern England, on April 8 following his near-month sickness with Covid-19.Arriving at his retirement home, he immediately went into self-isolation with his wife of 55 years, Jean, who has shown no symptoms of the virus. Soon after, Embleton realised he was…

Japanese exotic dancer Aya Yumiko has been living off her savings since March as she waits for the bars and clubs in Tokyo where she performs in burlesque shows to reopen.But a decision by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe this week to extend a state of emergency to tackle the coronavirus pandemic until the end of May means Yumiko could use up her last reserves of cash before she can get back to work.“I had enough saved up to last me for two or three months,” said the 40-year-old dancer, who performs…

Singapore Airlines’ shares surged the most in more than three decades on bets that ongoing fundraising will help the carrier survive as lockdown restrictions ease worldwide from Italy to the US.Its share price, adjusted for the planned rights issue, soared as much as 21 per cent, the most since October 1987. It pared its advance to 11 per cent this afternoon. The company unveiled in March plans to raise about S$8.8 billion (US$6.2 billion) by rights issue and convertible bonds to contend with…

As governments across the world scramble to roll out containment plans to stem the spread of the coronavirus, a survey has found most people are unimpressed with their leaders’ responses to the pandemic.Political leaders from China, Vietnam and New Zealand were ranked highly by their citizens in the survey of 23 economies, scoring 86, 82 and 67 respectively while those in France, Hong Kong and Japan came in last, scoring 14, 11 and 5.When it came to overall scores – a measure taking into…

“Wow, your shirt is really see-through. Are you wearing matching underwear?” the man says lewdly.It’s a virtual reality simulation – but it’s enough to shock 23-year-old Elizabeth Lee into silence as the scene plays out on her headset.The VR technology is part of the Girl, Talk project which is aimed at helping women fight back against harassment in Singapore.“I would think that I would respond in a more confrontational way,” Lee admits. “It felt very physically close … it was just really…

Indian government forces killed a top rebel commander and his aide in disputed Kashmir on Wednesday and shut down cellphone and mobile internet services during subsequent anti-India protests, officials and residents said.India’s security officials and some members of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party called his death as a major victory against insurgents. The killing could spark more unrest in the region.Riyaz Naikoo, 35, was the chief of operations of the region’s largest indigenous rebel…

South Korean health authorities raised new concerns about the novel coronavirus after reporting last month that dozens of patients who had recovered from the illness later tested positive again.The findings suggested that some people who survived Covid-19 could become reinfected with the virus that causes it, potentially complicating efforts to lift quarantine restrictions and to produce a vaccine.But after weeks of research, they now say that such test results appear to be “false positives”…

Signs of a growing split between Australia and the United States over an unproven theory that the coronavirus came from a Wuhan laboratory have emerged, amid claims the US embassy may have leaked a dossier linked to the allegations.The Sydney Morning Herald on Thursday reported that Canberra was increasingly concerned the Trump administration’s promotion of claims that the novel coronavirus began in a lab could undermine its push for an independent inquiry into the origins of the pandemic and a…

New coronavirus cases are rising in Indonesia’s provinces despite the government’s efforts to contain the outbreak in Jakarta, as hundreds of thousands of migrant workers in the capital seek ways to bypass a travel ban to return to their hometowns to observe the Eid al-Fitr holiday.Scientists are worried the mass wave of travellers could lead to the virus spreading from Jakarta and its satellite cities of 30 million, the epicentre of the pandemic, to the provinces where hospital facilities are…

Southeast Asian nations already straining from the United States-China tug of war for regional influence are likely to avoid supporting Washington’s drive for Taiwan to be granted observer status for a top-level meeting of the World Health Organisation, analysts have said.Even though the leaders of these countries understand the “moral and logical” arguments for allowing Taiwanese delegates to attend the annual meeting on May 18 – which will be live-streamed because of the coronavirus pandemic …

Malaysia’s politics took another dramatic turn on Friday ahead of its first parliamentary sitting in months as the speaker of the house accepted a motion by former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad to launch a no-confidence vote against his replacement, Muhyiddin Yassin.Mahathir, however, has conceded that he does not believe he has the numbers required to command the majority support of parliament, claiming that Muhyiddin had won over supporters by giving them government roles. “Maybe we will…

There was a collective sigh of relief when Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach shook elbows over the postponement of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in March because of the coronavirus pandemic. What with the unprecedented postponement of an Olympics and subsequent uncertainties over athletes, logistics, sponsors, a Tokyo 2020 main office employee contracting Covid-19, and the increasing friction between Abe’s and Tokyo governor (and…

A group of 150 Chinese workers believe the world’s largest maker of trainers used the coronavirus as an excuse to fire them, having helped Taiwanese firm Pou Chen successfully expand its production into Vietnam for more than a decade.Pou Chen, which makes footwear for the likes of Nike and Adidas, informed the group in late April that they would no longer be needed as they were unable to return to Vietnam from their hometowns in China due to the coronavirus lockdowns.“We believe we contributed…

Ratri Anindyajati had plenty of things to worry about when she, her sister and her mother became the first three people in Indonesia to catch the coronavirus. Little did she know that personal abuse and social stigma would be among them.But that was exactly what came her way after President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo revealed to a stunned nation on March 2 that Indonesia had recorded its first two infections. Though he did not name the victims, their details soon leaked out; Anindyajati’s younger…

The night of March 6, 2020, started much like every other night for boxing camp owner Pitak Kaewprapol – with a visit to a fight.Pitak and thousands of other Muay Thai fans had packed the New Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok to watch an evening of kick-boxing, ignoring a government order just three days earlier requiring large gatherings to be cancelled or postponed.Like many others among the crowd of fans, tourists, celebrities, trainers and promoters who packed the 5,000-capacity stadium,…

by Ileana Lobkowicz | Prague Daily Monitor

There's no doubt that the Czech Republic has a long and proud history of beer, claiming the title of highest beer-consuming nation per capita. But what is perhaps less known is that beyond the country's drinking abilities lies a centuries-old tradition of brewing beer — and in the most unlikely of places: monasteries.

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Prague Daily Monitor

In an article written by Jakub Plíhal for news server Aktualne.cz, about Prague's coming war with short-term rentals, he covered a symbolic protest in a building where out of seventeen flats only three are occupied by families permanently. Prague Mayor Zdeněk Hřib joined the protest organized by the Stop Airbnb group.

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HomeToGo

As we celebrate the International Wheelchair Day this coming Sunday on March 1st, we are sharing the results of a report into the 'Most Wheelchair-Friendly Cities in Europe'. Prague ranked at spot #15 and was found to be more accessible than larger cities like Paris or London.

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Disease, also known as Botrytis cinerea, turns fruits partially black to brown near the stalk

He won Beyond Zero Half Marathon this year.

More than 31,000 people who have tested positive for coronavirus have now died in Britain.

Social and cultural myths around sex may also become prominent.

He claims bank accounts were opened unprocedurally with signatories not known

Revenue projections have suffered a serious hit as a result of virus pandemic.

There is an urgent need for comprehensive legal proposals of transition and continuity despite Covid-19.

The 26-year-old joined Barca from Lyon in 2016.