WORLD
President Assad, 2 others approved to contest in Syrian Prez polls
The announcement was made on Monday by head of the Syrian Higher Constitutional Court, Jihad al-Laham, Xinhua news agency reported. Besides Assad, the other two candidates are Mahmoud Ahmed Muri and Abdullah Salloum Abdullah. The three applicants have passed all legal and constitutional requirements, while the rest of the 51 candidates have been rejected, including seven women, al-Laham said.
Mainland Europe's first underground railway turns 125
It is known as the Millennium Underground, as it was inaugurated in 1896, the year when Hungary celebrated the 1,000th anniversary of the arrival of Magyar tribes in the Carpathian Basin in Central Europe, reports Xinhua news agency. "The Millennial Underground is a favourite of generations of Hungarians and of tourists alike," the municipal transport company BKV said in a statement marking the occasion on Monday.
Pfizer in talks with India on vax approval, says CEO
"We are currently discussing with Indian government an expedited approval pathway to make our Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine available for use in the country," Pfizer CEO Alber Bourla said in a video posted on the company website. He pledged to send enough medicines over the next 90 days "to ensure that every Covid-19 patient in every public hospital across India can have access to them".
Global Covid-19 caseload tops 153.1 mn
In its latest update on Tuesday morning, the University's Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) revealed that the current global caseload and death toll stood at 153,177,931 and 3,209,349, respectively. The US continues to be the worst-hit country with the world's highest number of cases and deaths at 32,470,363 and 577,492, respectively, according to the CSSE.
Bill and Melinda Gates announce divorce after 27-year marriage
"After a great deal of thought and a lot of work on our relationship, we have made the decision to end our marriage," the Bill and Melinda Gates tweeted on Monday. According to reports, they met in the late 1980s when Melinda joined Microsoft, reports Xinhua news agency. They have three children and jointly run the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
China's special recruitment drive for Tibetans amid border standoff
India's external and military intelligence officials told IANS that senior PLA officials are touring specific areas of Tibet to raise the Tibetan-only force. But they said that most of the recruits are mixed Tibetans -- mostly children of Tibetan mothers and Han Chinese fathers or otherwise. Most of them are children of ex-PLA Han Chinese soldiers who got married to Tibetans, intelligence officials said.
Oversight Board to decide on Facebook's Trump ban on May 5
On January 21, the Oversight Board accepted a case referral from Facebook to examine its decision to indefinitely suspend Trump's access to post content on Facebook and Instagram, as well as provide policy recommendations on suspensions when the user is a political leader.
Diplomatic missions to Myanmar underscore need for press freedom
Diplomatic missions in Myanmar used the occasion of World Press Freedom Day on Monday to call attention to the country's continued detainment of journalists and restrictions on local media. "Today, no major independent printed media is operating in Myanmar, and internet shutdowns continue to be used to control news coverage, communications and access to information," said the missions.
G7 Ministers to meet for 1st time in 2 yrs
Ministers from the G7 countries will meet in person for the first time in two years on Monday in London, where they will discuss the withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan, a post-Brexit trade deal, Iran's nuclear programme and China. Ministers from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the US are due to meet British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, reports dpa news agency.
China acting more aggressively, says Blinken
"What we've witnessed over the last several years is China acting more repressively at home and more aggressively abroad. That is a fact," dpa news agency quoted US Secretary of State Antony Blinken as saying in a CBS News interview broadcasted on Sunday.
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