Sri Lanka ranked 3rd deadliest place for journalists
More than 5,000 people have been killed since conflicts between govt troops and LTTE escalated in the end of 2005.
By Xinhua | None, Colombo
UPDATED ON FEB 09, 2008 04:47 PM IST
Sri Lanka has been ranked as the third deadliest place for journalists in 2007 by the World Association of Newspapers (WAN), a media report said Saturday.
According to the Daily Mirror, the Paris-based association said six journalists were killed in Sri Lanka last year, while eight were killed in Somalia (ranked 2nd) and 44 in Iraq (ranked 1st).
Nearly 95 journalists and media workers were killed across the globe in 2007, with Iraq and other conflict zones accounting for more than two-thirds of the deaths, said the WAN. In 2006, 110 were killed, in 2005, 58 were killed while in 2004 and 2003, 72 and 53 were killed.
The Sri Lankan government said more than 5,000 people have been killed since conflicts between government troops and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) escalated in the end of 2005.
The WAN defends and promotes media freedom worldwide, and represents 18,000 newspapers.
US journalist arrested while covering protest goes on trial
Posted by Harshit Sabarwal | AP
PUBLISHED ON MAR 08, 2021 11:05 PM IST
Des Moines Register news reporter Andrea Sahouri, who was pepper-sprayed and jailed while reporting on a clash between protesters and police in May, is charged with failure to disperse and interference with official acts.
UK Covid-19 deaths continue to fall as over one-third population inoculated
Bloomberg
PUBLISHED ON MAR 08, 2021 11:00 PM IST
Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the milestone at a news conference on Monday, the same day the government took its first major step in easing lockdown restrictions by re-opening schools.
Italy's Covid-19 death toll tops 100,000
Posted by Harshit Sabarwal | AFP
PUBLISHED ON MAR 08, 2021 11:00 PM IST
Just over a year since it became the first European country to be overwhelmed by Covid-19, Italy's health ministry recorded another 318 virus-related deaths, taking the total to 100,103.
On Women's Day, Joe Biden creates gender policy council within White House
Bloomberg
PUBLISHED ON MAR 08, 2021 10:59 PM IST
US President Joe Biden created the policy council as part of two executive orders he signed on Monday to mark International Women’s Day.
Vaccinated people can visit each other mask free, says CDC
Bloomberg
PUBLISHED ON MAR 08, 2021 10:44 PM IST
The agency issued its long-awaited guidance for what fully vaccinated people can safely do, as inoculations rise but as health experts warn that the risk of the virus remains, especially with new variants.
Adviser urges China govt to use ‘fist and palm’ salute in times of pandemic
By Sutirtho Patranobis
UPDATED ON MAR 08, 2021 11:55 PM IST
Han Fangming, vice chairperson of the foreign affairs committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, argued that the traditional greeting fits the changing lifestyles
Trudeau names task force on women in the economy ahead of Budget
Bloomberg
PUBLISHED ON MAR 08, 2021 09:58 PM IST
Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland and Minister of Middle Class Prosperity Mona Fortier said Monday the group will harness expert voices across the country to help the government with a plan to address gender equality issues laid bare by the Covid-19 pandemic.
UK mulls postponing Brexit border checks on food
Bloomberg
PUBLISHED ON MAR 08, 2021 08:48 PM IST
David Frost, the minister who negotiated the Brexit trade deal with the EU and is now leading the UK’s relations with the bloc, has asked officials to review the timetable of the new border paperwork requirements, which are due to start from April 1, according to two people familiar with the matter.
Thailand to cut quarantine for vaccinated foreigners to 7 days from April
Reuters
PUBLISHED ON MAR 08, 2021 08:48 PM IST
- Vaccinations must be administered within three months of the travel period and travellers will be required to show negative Covid-19 test results.
Defying pandemic, feminists in Spain decry far-right attacks
AP
PUBLISHED ON MAR 08, 2021 08:47 PM IST
- Spain’s Constitutional Court on Monday rejected last-minute appeals by unions and women’s rights groups to hold any kind of street protest in the Spanish capital, following similar recent rulings by lower-level courts.
Man linked to 3 Ohio homicides dies after Detroit shooting
AP
PUBLISHED ON MAR 08, 2021 08:46 PM IST
- Chandra Moore, 55, died Friday, Detroit police Sgt. Nicole Kirkwood said.
South Africans invested most in 55 years as Covid-19 crisis raged
Bloomberg
PUBLISHED ON MAR 08, 2021 08:45 PM IST
- The country’s collective investment scheme industry saw net annual inflows of 213 billion rand ($13.8 billion) in 2020, according to statistics released by the Association for Savings and Investment South Africa on Monday. That was the highest figure since 1965.
EU says it’s tired of being a scapegoat for slow vaccines
Bloomberg
PUBLISHED ON MAR 08, 2021 08:40 PM IST
In a blistering counter-attack against criticism over the European Union’s sluggish Covid-19 vaccination program, von der Leyen refocused blame on manufacturers, notably AstraZeneca Plc, which she said hadn’t stockpiled doses as it started producing in Europe.
Italy arrests Algerian national over links to 2015 Paris attack
Posted by Harshit Sabarwal | AFP
PUBLISHED ON MAR 08, 2021 08:38 PM IST
The man, identified by La Repubblica newspaper as Athmane Touami, is alleged to have "guaranteed the availability of forged documents" to the Paris attackers, police said.
Austria stops using doses of one batch of AstraZeneca vaccine after nurse death
AFP, Vienna
PUBLISHED ON MAR 08, 2021 08:27 PM IST
- The decision had been taken as a precaution, the National Office for Health System Safety (BASG) said late on Sunday, adding that there was "no evidence of a causal link" between the jab and the woman's death.