WORLD

Beijing, China | XINHUA | Tensions swelled in the Arab world 10 years ago in the name of “Arab Spring,” and the region has since undergone major changes, though many countries were still reeling from a heavy blow from the movement. After the wave of anti-government protests and violence, some …

COMMENT | XINHUA | The final scene of a preposterous show performed by certain U.S. politicians appears on stage this weekend in Washington, showing that there is no limit on their ignorance and prejudice in containing China’s development. In a new action against China days before the U.S. government transition, …

Washington, US | XINHUA | U.S. President Donald Trump will leave Washington, D.C. Wednesday morning shortly before President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration, with a grandeur ceremony being planned for his departure, U.S. media reported Friday. The Associated Press cited people familiar with the plan as saying the farewell ceremony, to be …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT& XINHUA | Reports from Uganda’s capital Kampala indicate government has switched back on the internet Monday, midday. However social media remains blocked, with access to it only through a Virtual Private Network (VPN). Government had said they switched off social media and the internet, fearing …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Vice President Edward Ssekandi and senior cabinet colleagues Amelia Kyambadde, Elliod Tumwesigye, Prof Ephraim Kamuntu and Vincent Sempijja are among up to 36 NRM bigwigs that lost MP elections on Thursday. Others kicked out by voters are: Dr Crispus Kiyonga, Ruth Nankabirwa, Saida Bumba, Chris …

Geneva, Switzerland | Xinhua | The mission of the research team to arrive in China for novel coronavirus origin-tracing is about scientific answers, a senior World Health Organization (WHO) official said on Monday. “Understanding the origins of disease is not about finding somebody to blame, it is about scientific answers,” Michael …

United Nations | Xinhua | United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will serve a second five-year term, if that’s what member states want, his spokesman said on Monday. Stephane Dujarric, the chief spokesman for the secretary-general, said that the 75th UN General Assembly president, Volkan Bozkir, on Friday asked Guterres “about his …

Lisbon, Portugal | THE INDEPENDENT |    Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa tested positive for COVID-19, said a statement posted on the official website of the Portuguese Presidency on Monday night. Rebelo de Sousa had “tested negative yesterday, and although today’s antigen test is negative, it was now known, at …

New York, U.S. | Xinhua | Wall Street’s major averages advanced in the first trading week of the new year as investors shrugged off the turmoil in Washington and a weaker-than-expected December U.S. employment report. All the three major indexes finished higher on Friday after achieving their respective milestones in the …

Jakarta, Indonesia | XINHUA |  Indonesia’s Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi has confirmed the crash of a Boeing 737-500 plane of an Indonesian airlines with 62 people on board that lost contact with the air traffic controller on Saturday afternoon. At a virtual press conference held on Saturday evening, the …