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The world is in a very “dangerous period” of the COVID-19 pandemic compounded by more transmissible variants like Delta, which is continuing to evolve and mutate, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has warned. He said in countries with low vaccination coverage, terrible scenes of hospitals overflowing are again …

Newly arrived overseas tourists on Thailand’s island of Phuket were able to roam free without quarantine on Friday for the first time in more than a year, as Thailand launched a special programme for vaccinated visitors to the island. Tourists swam in hotel pools and walked along Phuket’s postcard-perfect beaches …

Japan’s military sent emergency rescuers to the central city of Atami on Saturday after landslides triggered by heavy rains left at least 20 people missing, public broadcaster NHK said. Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has called together an emergency task force to tackle the crisis, NHK added, as it broadcast Twitter …

Protesters have toppled statues of Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth II in the Canadian city of Winnipeg as anger grows over the discovery of the remains of hundreds of children in unmarked graves at former indigenous schools. A crowd chanted “no pride in genocide” before pulling down the statues of …

Baghdad Operations Command announced on Friday, that it thwarted an attempt to target Baghdad International Airport. Baghdad Operations Commander Maj. Gen. Ahmed Salim Bahjat said in a brief statement “The 6th Brigade foiled an operation to attack Baghdad International Airport with 10 Grad missiles.” A security source told Alghadeer News, …

The death toll from last week’s condominium collapse in Florida rose on Friday to 20 after search-and-rescue crews found two more bodies, including the 7-year-old daughter of a Miami firefighter, officials said. The grim, painstaking search for victims in the rubble, which was suspended for most of Thursday over safety …

Authorities are trying to increase the speed and effectiveness of vaccinations as the highly infectious Delta variant spreads. Germany is recommending that all people who get a first shot of the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine switch to a different type of vaccine for their second shot. The aim is to increase …

The Taliban say Afghanistan can get closer to peace and stability now that all US troops are leaving the country, as the foreign forces’ main base, Bagram, gets fully evacuated. “We consider this withdrawal a positive step,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told Reuters on Friday, hours after US military officials …

Local Iraqi media have reported a second attack on the US troops in the country after this morning’s attack on another US logistics convoy in Hilla. After it was reported on Friday morning that a US logistics convoy in Hilla was targeted, there are now reports coming out of Iraq …

The head of the Al-Fateh Alliance, Hadi Al-Amiri, called on Friday to “expel the American occupiers” from Iraq immediately. Al-Amiri said in a speech that Iraq’s stability and prosperity cannot be achieved as long as “American occupation” is still in Iraq and implementing “Zionist agendas.” Al-Amiri called on all Iraqis …

Iraq’s Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi issued an executive order to dismiss a roster of officials in the Ministry of Electricity. According to a statement by al-Kadhimi’s media office, the Prime Minister dismissed the General Director of the State Company for Electricity Transmission/the Middle Euphrates and reprimanded him for neglecting his …

Iraq’s Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi affirmed, today, Thursday, during his meeting with European Parliament President David Sassoli, Iraq’s aspiration to build distinguished bilateral relations, while noting that the government is continuing to implement economic reforms and diversify investment. A statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office said, “He met the …

Iraq logged 7554 COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, the Ministry of Health said today. The daily epidemiological report on the COVID-19 situation stated that 30 COVID-19 deaths were registered today. On the other hand, 4593 patients achieved full recovery. Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 in Iraq, 1353458 …

The former crown prince of Saudi Arabia has suffered serious injuries to his feet from beatings and can no longer walk unaided, sources familiar with his situation said, citing torture during his detention by the kingdom. NBC News, citing two people familiar with his situation, reported on Wednesday that Mohammed …

Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations says a guarantee by the United States that it will never unilaterally withdraw from the 2015 nuclear deal again is crucial to a successful conclusion of the ongoing talks in Vienna aimed at reviving the agreement. Speaking to reporters after a United Nations Security …

A Swedish police officer died from his wounds after being fatally shot in Gothenburg on Wednesday. It reportedly marks the first killing of a law enforcement officer in 14 years, as gun violence in the country continues to soar. The officer’s death was announced by police in a statement on …

Donald Rumsfeld’s legacy is “death and destruction, and a militarized American public,” American journalist Don DeBar has said, commenting on the death of the former US defense secretary who was the main architect of the Iraq war. Rumsfeld died at the age of 88 in Taos, New Mexico, his family …

UN health agency sounds the alarm and calls for ‘discipline’ as highly infectious Delta variant races through the region. The third wave of infections is now inevitable unless citizens and legislators are “disciplined”, the World Health Organization (WHO) warns, saying a 10-week decline in new coronavirus infections across Europe has …

Multiple cities scrapped Canada Day celebrations on Thursday after the discovery of hundreds of remains of children at former indigenous schools sparked a reckoning with the country’s colonial past. Calls to scale back or cancel celebrations snowballed after, beginning in May, almost 1,000 unmarked graves were found at former so-called …

Turkey’s withdrawal on Thursday from an international treaty to prevent violence against women is not a step backward, President Tayyip Erdogan said, defending a move that has drawn condemnation from many Turks and Western allies. “Some circles are trying to portray our withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention as a step …