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(Reuters) – Senior Japanese government officials will likely skip the Winter Olympics in Beijing in February, joining the United States in a diplomatic boycott, the Yomiuri newspaper reported on Saturday, citing multiple sources with knowledge of the matter. Earlier this week, Canada joined Australia, Britain and the U.S. in saying they would not send top …

Senior Japanese officials to skip Beijing Olympics – report Read More »

By Arshad Mohammed, Jonathan Landay and Andrea Shalal WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Donors agreed on Friday to transfer $280 million from a frozen, trust fund to the World Food Program (WFP) and UNICEF to support nutrition and health in Afghanistan, the World Bank said as it seeks to help a country facing famine and economic freefall. The …

Donors back $280 million transfer for Afghan food, health Read More »

By Matt Spetalnick and Drazen Jorgic WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Nicaragua’s sudden diplomatic switch from Taiwan to China was part of efforts by President Daniel Ortega’s government to shield itself from recent international sanctions against Managua, a senior U.S. administration official said on Friday. The United States is also uncertain whether Honduras could follow suit and open …

Exclusive-Nicaragua embracing China to insulate against international sanctions – U.S. official Read More »

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japanese researchers have developed masks that use ostrich antibodies to detect COVID-19 by glowing under ultraviolet light. The discovery by Yasuhiro Tsukamoto and his team at Kyoto Prefectural University in western Japan could provide for low-cost testing of the virus at home, they said in a press release. The scientists started by …

Japan researchers use ostrich cells to make glowing COVID-19 detection masks Read More »

By Andrew MacAskill LONDON (Reuters) -WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on Friday moved a step closer to facing criminal charges in the United States for one of the biggest ever leaks of classified information after Washington won an appeal over his extradition in an English court. U.S. authorities accuse Australian-born Assange, 50, of 18 counts relating …

Assange one step closer to extradition to United States Read More »

GENEVA (Reuters) – The United Nations human rights office said on Friday that Myanmar’s military was committing grave violations including killing 11 people and setting fire to their bodies. “We are appalled by the alarming escalation of grave human rights abuses in Myanmar,” U.N. human rights spokesperson Rupert Colville told a Geneva briefing. “In the …

U.N. decries ‘escalation of grave human rights abuses’ in Myanmar Read More »

BEIJING (Reuters) – The Beijing Winter Olympics will mainly rely on temporary and chartered flights from cities such as Tokyo and Singapore to bring in athletes for the Games due to China’s tight travel curbs and amid concerns over COVID-19, an official said on Friday. “The Omicron variant has already spread to over 50 countries, …

Olympics-Beijing Games to bring in athletes on chartered, temporary flights Read More »

HANOI (Reuters) – A Vietnamese hotel is offering diners the chance to try gold leaf-coated steaks, seeking to tap a wave of publicity after a government minister was caught on camera being fed the dish at a London restaurant, where steaks can cost over 1,000 pounds. The Dolce Hanoi Golden Lake Hotel had a makeover …

Vietnam War veteran launches ‘affordable’ gold steak restaurant Read More »

By Prasto Wardoyo PENANGGAL, Indonesia (Reuters) -Indonesian Muslims gathered for Friday prayers in an evacuation centre on the slopes of Mount Semeru, where thousands of people remain in limbo after a series of eruptions in the past week by the volcano left thousands homeless. The 3,676-metre (12,060 foot) volcano erupted spectacularly on Saturday, sending a …

Indonesian Muslims hold Friday prayers in shadow of deadly volcano Read More »