Author: News Desk

New Zealand reported no new cases of COVID-19 today, according to the country’s Director-General of Health Dr. Ashley Bloomfield — the first time zero new infections have been found since the country went into lockdown on March 25. Speaking at a news conference today, Bloomfield said one previously counted probable case has been reclassified as a confirmed case, keeping the number of total probable and confirmed cases at 1,487. In total, 1,276 patients have recovered, Bloomfield said. The last time New Zealand reported no new confirmed cases was March 16. Last Tuesday, the country lowered its national alert level, from it’s…

France’s state-supported ‘StopCOVID’ contact-tracing app should enter its testing phase a week on Monday when the country starts to unwind its lockdown, a government minister has said. Minister for Digital Affairs Cedric O, a member of President Emmanuel Macron’s inner circle, presented the app as a key element of France’s strategy to stave off the coronavirus as authorities grapple with the prospect of mass testing. “There’s nothing magical about this app, but it’s not technological coquetry either,” O wrote on online publishing platform Medium. “It’s only useful if it’s integrated into a global health system.” Countries are rushing to develop apps…

Netherlands manager Ronald Koeman is in a stable condition after being admitted to the hospital with chest pains on Sunday. The 57-year-old, who had spells in the Premier League with Everton and Southampton, was taken to hospital in Amsterdam after falling ill at his home. On Sunday evening the Dutch football association, the KNVB, tweeted: “That is a shock. Fortunately, things are going better again. Much strength and improvement, coach.” The Liverpool and Netherlands midfielder, Georginio Wijnaldum, tweeted: “Wishing you soon recovery coach.” https://twitter.com/GWijnaldum/status/1257007342744481796?s=20 Koeman has been the Dutch coach for just over two years and helped the country to…

The Bahrain Ministry of Health records an additional recovery from COVID-19. Bahrain tested a total of 144,155 until now. There are 1,657 active cases. These include 1,656 stable cases and 1 critical case. 1,718 people have been discharged. Only 8 deaths have been reported until now. This takes the total cases in Bahrain to 3,383. Read the New Guidelines in Bahrain – Click Here About the COVID-19 Deaths Read more about the eighth death – Click Here Read more about the seventh death – Click Here Read more about the sixth death – Click Here Read more about the fifth…

The head of rugby league’s players’ union has warned it will consider legal action against clubs who try to blacklist players resisting widespread pay cuts. Garreth Carvell, the former Great Britain prop who leads the Rugby League Players Association, said he had explained to clubs, in light of rumours suggesting some would excommunicate rebel players, that the union will not react kindly to such a move. Carvell said: “We heard that rumour and we had a frank conversation with all the chief executives telling them in no uncertain terms that actions like blacklisting players is illegal and if we got…

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says the initial reports on the shots fired from North Korea into South Korea on Sunday morning indicate they were “accidental.” “I’ve seen that reporting too. I’ve seen some of our internal information as well. We can confirm at least the initial reports are that you’ve described are just about right. A handful of shots that came across from the North. We think those were accidental. South Koreans did return fire so far as we can tell there was no loss of life on either side,” Pompeo said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week.” North Korea fired gunshots at…

Hackers put more than half a million login details for the teleconferencing app Zoom on the dark web, the Sunday Times newspaper reported. The logins were put up for sale at 1 pence (1.25 cents) each and were discovered and bought by cybersecurity intelligence company Cyble, the paper said. Cyble purchased the logins from a Russian-speaking person on the Telegram messaging service, which allows anonymous messaging. Zoom Video Communications Inc. has seen global usage of its service surge during coronavirus shutdowns, but has come under increasing pressure over vulnerabilities in the app’s software encryption. The company has been sued amid accusations it hid…

A national development strategy for the post-COVID-19 era will soon be started to deal with the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic and prepare for the future. His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai gave instructions to develop the strategy during a video conference meeting of the Cabinet on Sunday. Sheikh Mohammed ordered that an emergency plan be developed to increase the productivity and competitiveness of the medical industries sector as part of preparation for the post-COVID-19 era in the country. A work team chaired by the Minister…

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Sunday that there was “enormous evidence” that the coronavirus pandemic originated in a laboratory in Wuhan, China. “There is enormous evidence that this is where it began,” he said on ABC’s “This Week.” But while highly critical of China’s handling of the matter, Pompeo declined to say whether he thought the virus had been intentionally released. President Donald Trump has been increasingly critical of China’s role in the pandemic, which has infected nearly 3.5 million people and killed more than 240,000 around the world. He has insisted that Beijing recklessly concealed important information…

Bahrain Journalists Association (BJA) Board of Directors extended sincerest thanks and respect to His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa for their noble messages marking the World Press Freedom Day. In a statement, the board lauded the royal address, describing it as a roadmap for journalists and media persons in the upcoming phase to perform their duties freely, transparently and responsibly. It also praised the unlimited royal support to local press, stressing that HM the King’s message reflects his enlightened thought and noble will which launched the…