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Bill Gates has compared tackling the coronavirus pandemic to fighting a world war. In a memo on his website, Gates Notes, the co-founder of Microsoft wrote that the whole world is in a fight against the virus. “The coronavirus pandemic pits all of humanity against the virus. The damage to …

The last patient in Wuhan with severe COVID-19 has been cured, a health official has declared. The now-global disease was first detected in the Chinese city. The patient, who was the last person in Wuhan and the whole of Hubei Province to experience difficulty overcoming the virus, was released from …

The coronavirus can linger in patients’ eyes for several weeks and could act as a way of spreading the COVID-19 disease, according to a new study from Italy. Scientists at Italy’s National Institute for Infectious Diseases hospital in Rome studied the symptoms of an unnamed 65-year-old woman who developed the …

A major human rights group has urged authorities in the English Premier League to dismiss a bid by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and allies to take over the ownership of a club, saying the controversial figure fails the very basic tests of ownership rules in the competition. The …

African nations that lack ventilators to treat COVID-19 patients will receive some from the Jack Ma Foundation, an African Union official said on Thursday, as Nigeria stressed Africa’s dependence on a properly-funded World Health Organization (WHO)to help it fight the pandemic. Africa’s 54 countries have so far reported fewer than …

The first-ever YouTube video was uploaded on April 23, 2005 — exactly 15 years ago, Thursday. YouTube co-founder Jawed Karim posted the 18-second video, titled “Me at the zoo.” It has since garnered over 90 million views. To this day, it is the only video on Karim’s channel. Upon clicking …

In a reversal of prevailing COVID-19 wisdom, a French study appears to show smokers are less at risk from the virus, affirming the results of an earlier Chinese study. The data aren’t conclusive – but they’re certainly surprising. Nicotine may protect smokers against the coronavirus, according to a paper published …

Public Health England has recommended the use of vitamin D supplements during lockdown because people are spending more time indoors and have less exposure to sunlight as a result. Vitamin D is created by the body in response to direct sunlight on the skin, and it is thought that people …

If the big European football leagues can’t get their league back up and running by June, they could be forced to finish the season using PLAYOFFS, according to reports. UK newspaper the Daily Mail reports that UEFA has issued guidelines to clubs and leagues across the continent in a bid …

A further 4.4 million Americans sought unemployment benefits last week as the economic toll from the coronavirus pandemic continued to mount. The new applications brought the total number of jobless claims since mid-March to 26.4 million. That amounts to more than 15% of the US workforce. However, the most recent …

Lebanon has become the first Arab country to legalize cannabis farming for medical and industrial purposes – a move that could generate lucrative exports and foreign currency as the country struggles to cope with a financial crisis. Although growing the plant was previously illegal, cannabis has long been farmed openly …

The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday that there were “worrying upward trends” in early epidemics in parts of Africa and Central and South America, while also warning that opening up global travel needed to be managed carefully. “Most countries are still in the early stages of their epidemics …

The coronavirus pandemic and the travel restrictions that came with it have severely reduced the supply of illegal drugs entering France, sending prices skyrocketing and users turning to cheaper alternatives. The go-to land routes for drug traffickers crossing into France from the Netherlands and Spain have largely been closed off, …

The spectacular eruptions of the Kīlauea volcano in Hawaii in 2018 were triggered by extreme rainfall in the preceding months, research suggests. Scientists say the finding raises the possibility that climate breakdown, which is causing more extreme weather, could lead to an increase in eruptions around the world. The 2018 …

Fortnite for Android is available through the Google Play store for the first time, almost 18 months after owners Epic Games tried to use the game’s popularity to break the app store duopoly. The release is an embarrassing climbdown for Epic, which has sunk significant resources into building its own …

Amnesty International has written to the Premier League saying it “risks becoming a patsy” unless it takes a serious look at Saudi Arabia’s human rights record before sanctioning Newcastle United’s £300m takeover by an alliance in which the country’s sovereign wealth fund would hold an 80% controlling stake. Saudi’s Public …

The incredible flora and fauna of the Venetian canals have been caught on video as the lack of boats on the waterways leaves the water to clear and natural life to thrive. The Italian city world-renowned for its canals has been in lockdown since early March, having been among the …

The head of the World Meteorological Organization believes that the Corona virus pandemic will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 6% this year, which will be the largest annual decline since World War II. “This crisis has had an impact on greenhouse gas emissions,” said Petteri Talas, head of the organization, …

In a bustling meat market on a tourist island in Indonesia on 7 April, a pile of dead bats is laid out for sale on a table next to cuts of fresh pork while a butcher angrily shoos away a customer trying to take pictures of the scene on his …

New lawsuits have been filed against the helicopter company that owned and operated the aircraft that crashed in January, killing Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna and eight others. Family members from four of the eight passengers have sued the company, Island Express Helicopters. The Associated Press reported that two of …