World

LONDON (Reuters) – The Lloyd’s of London insurance market has apologised for its “shameful” role in the 18th and 19th Century Atlantic slave trade and has agreed to fund charities and organisations promoting opportunities for black and ethnic minority groups. FILE PHOTO: A man enters the Lloyd’s of London building in the City of London

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met China’s top diplomat, Yang Jiechi, in Hawaii on Wednesday, the State Department said, amid a deep deterioration of relations between strategic rivals that are the world’s two top economies. FILE PHOTO: U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks during a joint briefing about an executive

BERLIN (Reuters) – Germany will extend a ban on large events until at least the end of October to try to avoid a new wave of coronavirus infections, Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Wednesday. FILE PHOTO: Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel arrives for the the weekly cabinet meeting at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany June 17,

FILE PHOTO: Delegates attend the resuming of a United Nations Human Rights Council session before an urgent debate on allegations of “systemic racism, police brutality and violence against peaceful protests” in the United States following the death of George Floyd druing the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Geneva, Switzerland, June 15, 2020. Fabrice Coffrini/Pool via

SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korea said on Wednesday it had rejected South Korea’s offer to send special envoys to ease escalating bilateral tensions, and vowed to redeploy troops to demilitarised border units in the latest step towards nullifying inter-Korean peace accords. FILE PHOTO – A North Korean soldier looks toward the south as a South

MONTREAL (Reuters) – Quebec’s elementary and younger high school students will be divided into smaller subgroups, or “bubbles,” and no longer switch classes when they return to school this fall, education officials in the Canadian province hit hardest by the coronavirus outbreak said on Tuesday. FILE PHOTO: A student is escorted into the schoolyard by

SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korea blew up an office set up to foster better ties with South Korea in its border town of Kaesong on Tuesday after it threatened to take action if North Korean defectors went ahead with a campaign to send propaganda leaflets into the North. Kaesong Industrial Complex is shrouded by smoke

FILE PHOTO: Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam, wearing a face mask following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, holds a news conference in Beijing, China, June 3, 2020. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins HONG KONG (Reuters) – Hong Kong is moving towards a further relaxation of social gathering restrictions related to the coronavirus, Chief Executive Carrie Lam

Mexico’s President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador holds a news conference at the National Palace in Mexico City, Mexico, March 17, 2020. REUTERS/Henry Romero MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on Monday his country would, for “humanitarian” reasons, sell gasoline to Venezuela if asked to do so, despite a raft of

BEIJING (Reuters) – After weeks with almost no new coronavirus infections, Beijing has recorded dozens of new cases in recent days, all linked to a major wholesale food market, raising concerns about a resurgence of the disease. The capital is taking steps to try to halt the outbreak including ramping up testing. On Sunday night

Maria Ressa, Executive Editor and CEO of Philippine news website Rappler, arrives for the promulgation of her cyber-libel case at Manila Regional Trial Court in Manila City Hall, Manila, Philippines, June 15, 2020. REUTERS/Eloisa Lopez MANILA (Reuters) – The head of a Philippine news website known for its tough scrutiny of President Rodrigo Duterte faces

MADRID (Reuters) – Spain will reopen its borders to most European visitors from June 21, 10 days earlier than previously planned, the government said on Sunday, in a further easing of coronavirus restrictions but a week later than some other EU member states. FILE PHOTO: Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez speaks during a session to

FILE PHOTO: Britain’s Chancellor Rishi Sunak chairs the daily COVID-19 briefing at 10 Downing Street in London, Britain May 29, 2020. Andrew Parsons/10 Downing Street/Handout via REUTERS LONDON (Reuters) – Britain’s government will review its two-meter social distancing rule as a matter of urgency as it tries to help the country’s economy recover from a

FILE PHOTO: Volunteers in protective suits are seen a checkpoint at the entrance to a residential compound following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Jilin, Jilin province, China May 25, 2020. Picture taken May 25, 2020. China Daily via REUTERS BEIJING (Reuters) – China reported 57 new confirmed COVID-19 cases for June 13, the highest

PARIS (Reuters) – Riot police fired tear gas to prevent thousands of anti-racism protesters marching through central Paris on Saturday, as a wave of anger continued to sweep the world following the death of African American George Floyd. Demonstrators attend a protest against police brutality and the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd,

BEIJING (Reuters) – A Beijing district put itself on a “wartime” footing and the capital banned tourism and sports events on Saturday after a cluster of novel coronavirus infections centred around a major wholesale market sparked fears of a new wave of COVID-19. People are wearing face masks inside the Jingshen seafood market which has

FILE PHOTO: A thermometer and a sanitising gel are seen outside a classroom during a government-organised media tour at a high school as more students returned to campus following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Shanghai, China May 7, 2020. REUTERS/Aly Song/File Photo SHANGHAI (Reuters) – China reported 11 new COVID-19 cases and seven asymptomatic

FILE PHOTO: Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau delivers a commencement speech during a ceremony with post-secondary graduates in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada June 10, 2020. REUTERS/Blair Gable OTTAWA (Reuters) – Canada will make it a requirement to take airline passengers’ temperatures before they fly and anyone with a fever will not be allowed to travel, Prime

FILE PHOTO: A woman wearing a face mask walks in front of Lujiazui financial district in Shanghai, following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, China June 9, 2020. REUTERS/Aly Song/File Photo BEIJING (Reuters) – Mainland China reported seven new confirmed COVID-19 cases and one asymptomatic case as of end-June 11, the country’s national health authority said.

LONDON (Reuters) – John Waters and his wife Lois are delighted that they have been able to overcome the restrictions of Britain’s coronavirus lockdown and adopt a new pet with the help of Battersea Dogs and Cats Home in London and some videoconferencing. Shadow, a 6-1/2 year-old Siberian husky, had been living with a foster

SANAA (Reuters) – Yemeni qat seller Hamdan Hussein’s customers still come daily to the crowded market to buy the addictive green stimulant, despite doctors’ concerns that chewing in groups and spitting it could spread the new coronavirus. A vendor holds qat, a mild stimulant, at a qat market amid concerns of the spread of the

SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korea said on Thursday the United States has no standing to comment on inter-Korean affairs, and it is in Washington’s interest to stay quiet if it wants the upcoming presidential election to go smoothly, state media reported. FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump meets with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – Lawyers bringing a case before the World Court accusing Myanmar of genocide against its Rohingya Muslim minority have asked a U.S. district court to order Facebook to release posts and communications of Myanmar military and police. FILE PHOTO: Myanmar’s leader Aung San Suu Kyi attends a hearing in a case filed by

FILE PHOTO: Roses are laid on a plaque marking the location where Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme was shot and killed 25 years ago on a street in Stockholm February 28, 2011. REUTERS/Bob Strong STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – Stig Engstrom, a graphic designer, was the man who shot dead Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme in 1986,

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – New coronavirus cases in Mexico will keep rising for weeks to come, Deputy Health Minister Hugo Lopez-Gatell said on Tuesday, after the number of confirmed cases exceeded several expected peaks for the country in recent weeks. FILE PHOTO: Luis, 62, a patient suffering from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and diabetes, is

FILE PHOTO: Keir Starmer, Britain’s opposition Labour Party leader speaks at the House of Commons during question period amid the coronavirus disease outbreak in London, Britain May 20, 2020. UK Parliament/Jessica Taylor/Handout via REUTERS LONDON (Reuters) – British opposition Labour Party leader Keir Starmer was photographed taking a knee in support of the Black Lives

FILE PHOTO: A supporter of Lebanon’s Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah carries a child holding a picture of the late Iran’s Quds Force top commander Qassem Soleimani during a rally commemorating the annual Hezbollah’s slain leaders in Beirut’s southern suburbs, Lebanon February 16, 2020. REUTERS/Aziz Taher (Reuters) – An Iranian citizen who provided information to

RIO DE JANEIRO/SAO PAULO (Reuters) – Brazil reported 679 new COVID-19 deaths and 15,654 additional confirmed cases on Monday, as controversy grew over the country’s official coronavirus data amid allegations of manipulation from a senior lawmaker. FILE PHOTO: Gravediggers wearing protective suits bury the coffin of 70-year-old Manuel Farias, who died from the coronavirus disease

FILE PHOTO: Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus attends a news conference on the situation of the coronavirus (COVID-2019), in Geneva, Switzerland, February 28, 2020. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse GENEVA (Reuters) – The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) urged countries on Monday to press on with efforts to contain the

FILE PHOTO: A man wearing a protective face mask as he gestures while shopping amid the rush of people outside an electronics market, after Pakistan started easing the lockdown restrictions, as the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, in Karachi, Pakistan June 4, 2020. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Pakistan has recorded more than