Author: News Desk

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Wednesday faced a call for an inquiry into his government’s handling of the coronavirus crisis after failing to fully explain partial death data, limited testing, or the lack of equipment for hospitals. The novel coronavirus outbreak, the worst health crisis since the 1918 influenza pandemic, has left governments across the world grappling with stressed populations, a stalled global economy, and overloaded health services, Reuters reported. Johnson initially refrained from approving the stringent controls that other European leaders imposed but he later closed down the country when projections showed a quarter of a million people…

Dubai Airports, which owns and manages Dubai International and Dubai World Central, is preparing for resuming operations once the coronavirus lockdowns are lifted. The airport’s operator said on Wednesday that it is working closely with its aviation and commercial partners for a “gradual remobilisation” once travel restrictions are no longer in place. However, Dubai Airports did not provide further details on how and when operations will restart. It is also offering assistance to affected businesses, including tenants and concessionaires, to mitigate the impact of the pandemic. The aviation industry is badly hit by the current crisis with various airlines losing…

Mass immunization with a newly developed vaccine against the COVID-19 coronavirus disease could start in Switzerland in October, according to immunologist Martin Bachmann. The national regulatory body Swissmedic confirmed that it was in talks with scientists including Bachmann, who works at the Bern University Hospital, Deutsche press agency (DPA) reported. “The time schedule is extremely optimistic, but it is not totally far-fetched,” Swissmedic spokesman Lukas Jaggi told DPA this week. “Given the urgency of the coronavirus pandemic, we are talking about weeks, not months of approval procedures,” he added. If the vaccine meets all requirements, a decision to green-light it…

Australia’s latest bush fires released far more carbon dioxide in one season than the country’s annual greenhouse gas pollution, according to a government estimate. An estimated 830 million tons of carbon dioxide were released into the atmosphere between September and February due to the devastating fires, according to a preliminary estimate by the Department of Industry, Science, Energy, and Resources released this month, Deutsche press agency (DPA) reported. Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions are about 540 million tons of carbon dioxide-equivalent per year, according to a policy brief published in October by the Australian National University. But the fire-affected temperate forests…

A regional lawmaker in Berlin is proposing that a 1,000-bed field hospital being built in the German capital should be used to treat coronavirus patients from Italy. Catherina Pieroth-Manelli told public broadcaster rbb Wednesday that the move would send a signal of solidarity to Italy, which has been hardest-hit in Europe by the pandemic, The Associated Press reports. Pieroth-Manelli, a member of the Greens that are part of a three-party governing coalition in Berlin state, said the offer would depend on how the number of infections develops in Germany. Even without the field hospital, which will be completed at the…

Chairman of Bahrain Chamber Sameer Nass invited registered members of the Chamber to participate in the Ordinary General Assembly Meeting, which will be held virtually via electronic means of communication which will be held today in accordance with Article (15) of Decree-Law No. (48) for the year 2012 with regard to Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry. In this regard, the Chamber explained that the meeting will be held virtually due to the exceptional circumstances as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, and in line with the directives and national efforts to combat the virus and curb its spread. The…

Over 300 food kits were provided for families and individuals in Bahrain who have been most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Mata Amritanandamayi Seva Samiti, Bahrain (MASS) is working around the clock to reach out to unemployed salon workers, domestic workers, and migrant workers. MASS Bahrain also distributed food kits to families going through unfortunate conditions to help give them a sense of relief and to reduce the growing panic amongst them. Arrangements were made to distribute freshly cooked homemade food for workers living in camps, who are unable to provide for themselves at the moment. Moreover, medical teams…

His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Minister, today chaired a meeting of the Government’s Executive Committee, held remotely. HRH the Crown Prince highlighted that safeguarding the health of citizens and residents remains the Kingdom’s top priority. Furthermore, His Royal Highness added that the success of Team Bahrain’s efforts to contain and eradicate COVID-19 rely on the whole community adhering to official public health guidelines. HRH the Crown Prince noted the importance of the holy month of Ramadan, adding that additional precautionary guidelines will be issued to preserve…

The latest update reveals as of now there are 1,162 active cases of which 1,160 are stable while two patients are critical. Over 1,343 people have been discharged and this is definitely a great number. This success has been achieved due to the collaboration of everyone at the national level. Most of the cases reported have been of people who have had direct contact with family therefore let’s try and avoid family gathering and limit them. We urge everyone to keep up with their personal hygiene, wash hands, use sanitizers and disinfect surfaces whether at home or in the office…

“During the month of Ramadan which is for family, this time is different as we are facing coronavirus so we need to change our social behaviour. In terms of the plasma treatment, we have received the second batch of donors. I would like to confirm that this has been effective. We take the blood sample from the donor at the lab and we take the antibodies within the blood. These antibodies would help assist infected patients in decreasing respiratory inflammation. We are optimistic that if we implement it, we would see great results” said Lt. Col. Dr. Manaf Al Qahtani-Member…