Luweero, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Several grain millers in Luweero town are stuck with tons of maize flour and animal feeds as sales dwindle in the middle of lockdowns undertaken to contain the spread of coronavirus disease-COVID-19. The sales fell drastically from the time president Yoweri Museveni directed all …
Read More »Confinement chic? All change for business wear during lockdown
London, United Kingdom | AFP | The suits, shirts and ties remain on their hangers. Skirts, blouses and high heels have been left in the closet. With office workers at home during coronavirus lockdown, the dress code is noticeably more casual. According to clothing brands and marketing studies, comfort has trumped …
Read More »US, China block UN resolution in spat over WHO handling of pandemic
United Nations, United States | AFP | The United States and China remained at loggerheads Thursday over a UN Security Council draft resolution calling for a 90-day humanitarian pause in conflicts worldwide in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. The stalemate — over a mention of the World Health Organization — …
Read More »Premier League wrestles with ‘Project Restart’
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Premier League clubs will meet on Friday to discuss whether it is realistic to complete the season during the coronavirus crisis or whether they will have to brace for a devastating financial hit. The Dutch season has already been called off, Belgium looks set to …
Read More »Joe Biden launches VP search committee for White House bid
Washington, United States | AFP | Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, on Thursday unveiled a committee to help him search for and vet a running mate in his White House race against Donald Trump. The step comes as Biden faces mounting pressure to address allegations by a former aide …
Read More »Maradona pleads for ‘Hand of God’ to end pandemic
Buenos Aires, Argentina | AFP | Argentine football legend Diego Maradona has asked the “Hand of God” to deliver the world from the coronavirus pandemic and allow normal life to resume. The World Cup winner referred to his hand-assisted goal in the 1986 World Cup after Argentine football chiefs voted to …
Read More »Anti-torture body signals ‘deep crisis’ in British jails
Strasbourg, France | AFP | Prisons in Britain are “violent, unsafe and overcrowded”, according to a damning report published on Thursday by the Council of Europe. The pan-European rights body’s anti-torture committee also reported “alarmingly high” levels of substance abuse and said large numbers of prisoners suffered from mental health disorders. …
Read More »Vendors starve as DRC protects rich and powerful from virus
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | DR Congo has cordoned off the poshest and richest neighbourhood in its chaotic capital Kinshasa to protect it from coronavirus, dealing a body blow to thousands of street hawkers who earn a meagre living there. Gombe, a waterfront district housing ministries, top government officials, millionaires …
Read More »Football’s return ‘good for everyone’ – Mourinho
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Tottenham manager Jose Mourinho believes bringing football back, even behind closed doors, would be a much-needed morale boost for fans starved of action during the coronavirus crisis. No Premier League games have been played since March 9 due to the pandemic, which has claimed more …
Read More »New coronavirus not man-made or genetically modified: US intelligence
Washington, United States | AFP | The US intelligence community said Thursday it had concluded that the novel coronavirus that has swept the globe originated in China but was not man-made or engineered. “The entire Intelligence Community has been consistently providing critical support to US policymakers and those responding to the …
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