Author: News Desk

India reported a further decline in new coronavirus cases on Monday but daily deaths remained above 4,000 and experts said the data was unreliable due to a lack of testing in rural areas where the virus is spreading fast. For months now, nowhere in the world has been hit harder than India by the pandemic, as a new strain of the virus fuelled a surge in infections that has risen to more than 400,000 daily. Even with a downturn over the past few days, experts said there was no certainty that infections had peaked, with alarm growing both at home…

The Saudi Ministry of Interior has set out certain conditions for citizens to fulfill in order to travel to Bahrain, according to an official source at the ministry. In a statement on early Monday, the interior ministry said that the travel requirements have been laid down on recommendations of the concerned health authorities in order to preserve public health. https://youtu.be/C3Is-LjiIOE According to the source, the mandatory requirements to travel to Bahrain are the following: Travelers must be over the age of 18. The health status on their Tawakkalna application must be immune. They must have taken complete doses of an approved coronavirus…

The King Fahd Causeway linking Bahrain and Saudi Arabia reopened on Monday, after remaining closed for more than a year as a Covid-19 precaution. However, only those who have been vaccinated or have recovered from COVID-19 will be allowed to leave Saudi Arabia, according to the authorities. Proof shall be presented via the Tawakkalna app. A coronavirus insurance certificate is required for travelers under the age of 18. https://youtu.be/C3Is-LjiIOE Travelers will be required to carry any of the health applications approved in the GCC countries, which confirm whether they are vaccinated or have recovered from the virus, Bahrain’s News Agency…

The price of Bitcoin traded below $45,000 on Sunday after a tweet by Tesla CEO Elon Musk, an outspoken supporter of cryptocurrency, suggested Tesla may be considering or may have sold off its bitcoin holdings. Musk’s tweet was in response to an unverified Twitter account called @CryptoWhale, which said, “Bitcoiners are going to slap themselves next quarter when they find out Tesla dumped the rest of their #Bitcoin holdings. With the amount of hate @elonmusk is getting, I wouldn’t blame him…”. Musk replied “indeed” without specifying whether Tesla had sold off its bitcoin holdings or that he simply agreed with the sentiment that…

Paris St Germain clung on to their hopes of winning a fourth consecutive Ligue 1 title with a 4-0 home win against 10-man Stade de Reims as Lille’s lead was cut to a single point with one game remaining on Sunday. As PSG cruised to a routine victory, Lille, who have 80 points, were held to a goalless draw by mid-table St Etienne and now need a win at Angers in the final round to guarantee them a first title since 2011. Monaco stayed third on 77 points, one win away from guaranteeing a Champions League spot, as goals by…

Saudi Arabia announced on Sunday that foreign visitors arriving by air from most countries will no longer need to quarantine if they have been vaccinated against COVID-19. Visitors from 20 other countries – including the United States, India, Britain, Germany, France and the United Arab Emirates – remain banned from entering the kingdom, however, under measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus. The civil aviation authority (GACA) said that from May 20 non-Saudi visitors arriving in the kingdom from eligible countries by air who are fully vaccinated, or have had COVID-19 and recovered, will no longer have to spend…

Algeria will reopen air and land borders on June 1, but strict measures will be imposed to limit the spread of the coronavirus, the presidency said on Sunday. Only five flights a day from and to Algerian airports will be allowed “with full adherence to strict precautions”, it said in a statement after a cabinet meeting chaired by President Abdelmadjid Tebboune. More details would be announced in a week, it added. Algeria closed borders and suspended all flights in March 2020 when the number of COVID-19 infections started to increase, but domestic flights resumed in December last year. The North…

At the request of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Chair of the Islamic Summit and the headquarters state of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), a virtual emergency meeting of the Executive Committee at the level of foreign ministers was held here today to discuss the bloody events and Israeli attacks in the land of Palestine, especially in Al-Quds Al-Sharif and what Israel is carrying out in the vicinity of the holy Aqsa Mosque. The meeting was chaired by Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs, Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah, who delivered a speech at the beginning of the…

Australia is sticking to plans to start re-opening to the rest of the world only from the middle of next year, officials said on Sunday, resisting mounting pressure to end the closure of international borders. In March 2020, Australia closed its borders to non-nationals and non-residents and has since been allowing only limited international arrivals, mainly citizens returning from abroad. “All the way through we will be guided by the medical advice,” Prime Minister Scott Morrison said at a televised briefing. “We will be guided by the economic advice.” Earlier in the day, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg told the Australian Broadcasting…

India is preparing to evacuate thousands of people from low-lying areas along its western coast as a powerful cyclone is expected to make landfall on Tuesday morning in the state of Gujarat. “It is very likely to intensify further during the 24 hours, and move north-northwestwards and reach Gujarat coast in the evening of 17th (May),” the India Meteorological Department said in a statement. Cyclone Tauktae, which formed in the Arabian sea, is expected to cross Gujarat with wind gusts of up to 175 kmph (109 mph) and is expected to make landfall in the state the following morning. India…