Author: News Desk

Volunteers desperately trying to keep 4,000-tonne oil spill away from Mauritius  Volunteers are scrambling to create cordons to keep leaking oil from a ship away from the island of Mauritius.  The ship was believed to have been carrying 4,000 tonnes of oil, it ran aground on a coral reef off the Indian Ocean island on 25 July.  Locals are making barriers of straws stuffed into fabric sacks in an attempt to absorb the oil.  Mauritius is home to world-renowned coral reefs, and tourism is a crucial part of its economy.  Images online show volunteers collecting straw from fields and filling…

Mass resignation of Lebanese government expected Monday The Lebanese government is heading toward a mass resignation on Monday following the horrific explosion in Beirut.  The explosion killed more than 150 people and left at least 6,000 wounded with hundreds of thousands left homeless.  The explosion has further fueled public anger after it was confirmed authorities knew the huge pile of ammonium nitrate had been stored at the port for six years, with people already enraged by government corruption, incompetence and negligence.  Several ministers have already discussed the possibility of stepping down – with Information Minister Manal Abdel Samad announcing her…

GLOBAL COVID-19 TODAY CORONAVIRUS CASES: 20,026,161 DEATHS: 734,020 RECOVERED: 12,900,625 …………………………………… Covid-19: only 53% of Britons would definitely have vaccination  The Guardian says only half the population of Britain definitely would accept being vaccinated against Covid-19. That is the shock conclusion of a group of scientists and pollsters who have found that only 53% of a test group of citizens said they would be certain or very likely to allow themselves to be given a vaccine against the disease if one becomes available. Read the full story on The Guardian  …………………………………… Little evidence of school transmission – minister BBC News…

Angry Lebanese vow new protests over deadly blast that killed 158, following a night of clashes Lebanese protesters are enraged by official negligence blamed for the deadly Beirut blast and have vowed to rally again after a night of street clashes in which they stormed several ministries.  “Prepare the gallows because our anger doesn’t end in one day,” warned one message circulating on social media in response to the explosion.  The calls for new protests came as French President Macron was to oversee a UN-backed virtual donors conference to raise aid for Lebanon, a country already mired in a painful…

Afghanistan to release 400 ‘hardcore’ Taliban paving the way to ‘peace-talks’ Afghanistan agreed on Sunday to release 400 “hard-core” Taliban prisoners, paving the way for peace talks aimed at ending a more than 19-year war.  US President Donald Trump has been putting on the pressure for a deal to allow him to bring home US troops leading to the war-torn country’s grand assembly approving the release.  “In order to remove an obstacle, allow the start of the peace process and an end of bloodshed, the Loya Jirga approves the release of 400 Taliban,” the assembly said.  Afghan President Ashraf Ghani…

In today’s briefing update, the Sunday Papers lead with the PM’s plans to open schools in September, warning children will suffer more harm by staying at home. Other front pages lead with a warning of a second lockdown in September and France asking the UK for £30m to police the Channel.   In our special feature, we look at global coronavirus updates.  ……………………………………… PM’s school plans: Children suffer more harm by staying at home The Sunday Times says Boris Johnson is set to warn parents that keeping children home is a far greater threat to their wellbeing than Covid-19. The paper…

Lebanon hit with anti-govt protests after Beirut blast, police use tear gas Lebanese security forces late Thursday fired tear gas to disperse dozens of anti-government protesters angered by the Beirut blast that has killed over 157, injured over 4000 and has leftover 250,000 homeless.  The devastating blast is widely seen as the most shocking expression yet of their government’s incompetence.  The protests in central Beirut took place in a street leading to parliament, the area is still heavily littered with debris and wreckage from Tuesday’s explosion.  Protesters had sparked a blaze, vandalised stores and lobbed stones at security forces, according…

Trump bans US transactions with Chinese-owned TikTok and WeChat President Trump has issued executive orders banning any US transactions with ByteDance – the Chinese company that owns the app TikTok, and Tencent, owner of the WeChat app, starting in 45 days.  https://twitter.com/ccjanetang/status/1291546392935235586 The orders issued on Thursday come as the Trump administration said this week it was stepping up efforts to purge “untrusted” Chinese apps from US digital networks and called the Chinese-owned app TikTok and messenger app WeChat “significant threats.”  In one of the orders, Trump said the TIkiTok app may be used for disinformation campaigns that benefit the…

GLOBAL COVID-19 TODAY CORONAVIRUS CASES: 19,261,406 DEATHS: 717,717 RECOVERED: 12,363,249 …………………………………… Safety concerns halt the use of 50 million NHS masks BBC News says fifty million face masks bought by the UK government in April will not be used in the NHS because of safety concerns. The government says the masks, which use ear-loop fastenings rather than head loops, may not fit tightly enough. They were bought for NHS England healthcare workers from supplier Ayanda Capital as part of a £252m contract. Read the full story on BBC News …………………………………… Another shutdown risks thousands of deaths in Covid-19 second-wave The…

UK cinemas ‘disappointed’ Mulan will get an online release (at a cost of $29.99) Disney’s decision to give its Mulan remake an online streaming release has been strongly criticised by the body representing British cinemas.  The live-action reboot had been due in cinemas, but the company has now decided it will be released on its streaming site Disney+ in the US.  The UK Cinema Association said it understands the same will happen in the UK, describing it as “hugely disappointing.”  “For many, this will seem a step backwards rather than forward,” said Chief executive Phil Clapp.  Whilst cinemas have been…