Author: News Desk

Some 35 million American families have started receiving their first monthly payout from the U.S. government in an expanded income-support program that President Joe Biden said on Thursday could help end child poverty. Under the Child Tax Credit program that was broadened under Biden’s COVID-19 stimulus, eligible families collect an initial monthly payment of up to $300 for each child under six years old and up to $250 for each older child. Payouts made to families, covering nearly 60 million eligible children, totaled about $15 billion for July. The payments are automatic for many U.S. taxpayers, while others need to…

Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro’s health is “evolving in a satisfactory manner” but the right-wing leader, who was hospitalized this week after complications from a 2018 stabbing, does not have a timeline for leaving hospital, his doctors said on Thursday. The president flew from the capital Brasilia to Sao Paulo on Wednesday to undergo tests, and possible emergency surgery, to unblock an obstructed intestine after days of hiccups. Bolsonaro, a former army captain, has been hospitalized several times in the wake of the near-fatal campaign trail stabbing, which perforated his intestine. He also caught COVID-19 last year. “Jair Messias Bolsonaro, remains…

At least 44 people are dead and dozens missing as two days of continuous, heavy rain in western Germany causes massive floods and travel chaos. Flash floods hit cities across Rhineland-Palatinate and North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), Germany’s most populous state, turning streets into rivers and causing houses to collapse. Further heavy rain and storms are forecast for Thursday and Germany’s weather service said more heavy rain could be expected by the end of the day. Eighteen people died and dozens were missing around the wine-growing region of Ahrweiler, police said, after the Ahr river that flows into the Rhine rose and brought down…

Johnson & Johnson is voluntarily recalling five Neutrogena and Aveeno brand aerosol sunscreen products after detecting a cancer-causing chemical in some samples. The New Jersey-based company said on Wednesday that consumers should stop using the products and discard them, after internal testing identified low levels of benzene in some samples. J&J is also notifying distributors and retailers to stop selling the products and arranging for their return “out of an abundance of caution”. Benzene is classified as a substance that could potentially cause cancer depending on the level and extent of exposure. J&J said benzene is not an ingredient in…

Vaccination at Oman government designated centres will be suspended from July 16 until July 25, General Directorate of Health Services of the Governorate of Muscat has said. The campaign has been in full swing in Oman, with the daily vaccinations reaching up to 40,000 people. While the shots given in government assigned centres which are free of cost are intended predominantly for Omani citizens, private clinics and hospitals spread across the country are engaged in adminstering the shots for expatriates at a cost. The vaccination facilities at government health centres are also used by expatriate healthcare workers and those who…

EU proposes effective ban for new fossil fuel cars from 2035 The European Union on Wednesday proposed an effective ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars from 2035, aiming to speed up the switch to zero-emission electric vehicles (EVs) as part of a broad package of measures to combat global warming. The EU executive, the European Commission, proposed a 55% cut in CO2 emissions from cars by 2030 versus 2021 levels, much higher than the existing target of a 37.5% reduction by then. It also proposed a 100% cut in CO2 emissions by 2035, which would make…

The Economic Development Board (EDB), the country’s Investment Promotion Agency (IPA), was recognised by the international economic development organisation OCO Globalfor its resilience in responding to the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, ranking 6 th top global IPA with the most resilience to add new source markets in the 2021 OCO Global Innovation Index. The EDB also ranked 2nd , alongside Invest Denmark and Invest HK (Hong Kong), in the technology sub- index, highlighting the EDB’s efforts in using technology to attract, facilitate and promote investment. The 2021 OCO Global IPA Innovation Index evaluated 20 leading global IPAs on…

Bahrain announces the upcoming changes to the Kingdom’s alert level Following a review of the average COVID-19 positivity rates and approval by the Government Executive Committee, the National Medical Taskforce for Combatting the Coronavirus (COVID-19) today announced that the Kingdom of Bahrain will adopt the Green Alert Level on Friday 16 July 2021. The Kingdom will adopt the Orange Alert Level during the Arafah and Eid Al-Adha holidays, starting from 19 July to 22 July 2021. This is in line with the previous announcement that some dates will be designated a higher alert level in the interest of public health…

The Civil Aviation Affairs has updated travel regulations, expanding the number of Red List countries, in line with directives issued by the Government Executive Committee after a review of the latest recommendations of the National Medical Taskforce for Combating the Coronavirus (COVID-19). Passengers arriving from Red List countries, including passengers who have transited through any of those countries at any point in the preceding 14 days, are prohibited from entry unless they are citizens or residents of the Kingdom of Bahrain. Passengers eligible for entry must present a negative PCR certificate, with a QR code, administered within 48 hours of…

The head of the U.N. children’s agency, UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore, plans to step down to deal with a family health issue, a U.N. spokesperson said on Tuesday. Fore, a former head of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) who was appointed to run UNICEF by U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in 2018, will stay in the job until a replacement is found. Since it was established in 1946, UNICEF has had seven executive directors – all Americans. Guterres thanked Fore for “her inspiring leadership of UNICEF and for her service to improve the lives of children all around…