Author: News Desk

MELBOURNE: Australians were celebrating Easter Sunday in a relatively unrestricted manner as the country reported no new locally acquired coronavirus cases. Queensland, the epicentre of a recent, small COVID-19 community outbreak, has had only one infection in the past three days. The state has the tightest restrictions on public gatherings. Elsewhere, Australians flocked to the beaches, capitalising on the warm weather in many parts of the country, or gathered with families, in a stark contrast to last year’s Easter when a nationwide lockdown kept people confined to their homes. While many countries have imposed fresh lockdowns or curtailed services for…

WASHINGTON: A leaker says they are offering information on more than 500 million Facebook Inc users – including phone numbers and other data – virtually for free. The database appears to be the same set of Facebook-linked telephone numbers that has been circulating in hacker circles since January and whose existence was first reported by tech publication Motherboard, according to Alon Gal, co-founder of Israeli cybercrime intelligence firm Hudson Rock. In a statement, Facebook said that the data was “very old” and related to an issue that it had fixed in August 2019. (Reuters)

MANAMA: Gulf Air – Bahrain’s national carrier celebrated its new direct service to and from Singapore, operated by the airline’s flagship Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner,  with Flight GF165 landing at Changi Airport at 12:25 local time on Sunday. “We’re happy to land in Singapore and expand our network with direct flights connecting Bahrain and the Far East,” Gulf Air’s Acting Chief Executive Officer Captain Waleed AlAlawi said. “This is a great opportunity for everyone to try our state-of-the-art Dreamliner and explore our latest boutique and premium leisure destination.” The direct flights feature 26 Falcon Gold seats and 256 economy class seats;…

BUENOS AIRES: Argentinian President Alberto Fernandez has tested positive for Covid-19, he said on Friday night, his birthday, the Deutsche Presse Agentur (DPA) reported. “At the end of today, after presenting a temperature of 37.3 [degrees Celsius] and a slight headache I had an antigen test which gave a positive result,” Fernandez said in a tweet posted just after midnight (0300 GMT). The Argentinian president said he was isolating and following protocols while awaiting a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test result. Antigen tests are quicker, but said to be less accurate than PCR tests. “I am physically well and, although…

MOGADISHU: Al Shabaab militants attacked two military bases belonging to the Somali National Army early on Saturday morning, witnesses and the militants said. Al Shabaab, which is linked to al-Qaeda, is made up of Islamist militants who have waged years of attacks and levied tolls on trade in a campaign to introduce strict religious law, Reuters reported. There was no immediate official comment or details on casualties but one military officer in the army confirmed the attacks. “We are on the way as reinforcement,” Ahmed Abdullahi told Reuters by phone, adding that the attacks occurred at the Bariire and Awdhigle…

Manama: Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities (BACA) President Shaikha Mai bin Mohammed Al-Khalifa received Advisor to the Economic Development Board (EDB) Ian Lindsay and discussed cooperation. Shaikha Mai highlighted BACA-EDB cooperation over the past years to supports cultural projects, include the Spring of Culture Festival. She underlined BACA-led efforts to ensure the success of Bahrain’s participation in the 2020 Dubai Expo, which will be held in October 2021. Lindsay praised BACA-led role in promote the cultural landscape in Bahrain, looking forward to continuing joint cooperation.

Manama: A coordination meeting was held today to prepare for the third meeting of the Bahrain-India High Joint Commission (HJC), to be held in New Delhi on April 7. The coordination meeting was chaired by the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for International Affairs, Dr. Shaikh Abdullah bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, and the Secretary (CPV&OIA) of the Ministry of External Affairs of the Republic of India, Sanjay Bhattacharyya. During the meeting, the two sides reviewed the existing partnership frameworks between the two countries, the progress made in the fields of health, space science, computing, trade and investment, and security and…

MANAMA: Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) is set to host back-to-back nights of exciting karting battles on Thursday and Friday (April 1 and 2) as the action never stops at “The Home of Motorsport in the Middle East” in Sakhir. BIC’s world-class karting facility, Bahrain International Karting Circuit (BIKC), will be the setting of the second and third rounds of the 2021 Bahrain Karting Sprint Championship (BKSC), featuring the Bahrain Rotax Max Challenge (BRMC). High-octane racing will be held along BIKC’s 1.414-kilometre CIK-FIA track and it will feature competition in the BRMC’s various categories, including the Senior Max, Max Masters, Junior…

MANAMA: The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani, met on Tuesday with the Minister for the Middle East and North Africa at the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, James Cleverly, in the Kingdom to participate in the Bahrain-UK Joint Working Group. Al Zayani praised the close historical friendship between the two kingdoms and the growth it is witnessing in various fields. He also noted in this regard the advanced level of bilateral cooperation and coordination that serve their shared interests. He stressed the importance of the constructive role of the Bahrain-UK Joint Working Group, the relentless…