Pandemics

TOKYO Almost overnight, Japan has become a stunning, and somewhat mysterious, coronavirus success story. Daily new COVID-19 cases have plummeted from a mid-August peak of nearly 6,000 in Tokyo, with caseloads in the densely populated…

LAGOS, Nigeria Nigeria is seeing one of its worst cholera outbreaks in years, with more than 2,300 people dying from suspected cases as Africa’s most populous country struggles to deal with multiple disease outbreaks. This year’s…

WASHINGTON In his pandemics and loudest words, President Joe Biden ordered on Thursday new comprehensive federal vaccine requirements for up to 100 million Americans (private-sector employees, health workers, and federal employee…

DAVID RISING | BANGKOK With coronavirus deaths rising in Myanmar, allegations are growing from residents and human rights activists that the military government, which seized control in February, is using the pandemic to consolidate…

BANGKOK Thailand is ramping up efforts to curb trade in wildlife to help reduce the risk of future pandemics, officials said Thursday, though it was unclear whether that would mean an end to all such sales in the wildlife trafficking…

NEW DELHI As the coronavirus tears through India, night watchman Sagar Kumar thinks constantly about getting vaccines for himself and his family of five amid critical shortages of shots in the country. But even if he knew how to get one,…

TOKYO Global shares advanced Tuesday as investors snapped up bargains after recent sell-offs spurred by a worsening of the pandemic in some countries. France’s CAC 40 gained 0.4% in early trading to 6,390.95, while Germany’s DAX…

KATHMANDU, Nepal Authorities extended lockdown in the capital Kathmandu and surrounding districts by another 15 days as the Himalayan nation recorded the highest daily new cases and highest daily deaths from coronavirus on Tuesday.…

SEOUL, South Korea North Korea has told the World Health Organization that it has tested 25,986 people for the coronavirus through April but still has yet to find a single infection. The WHO said in a weekly monitoring report that…

TAIPEI, Taiwan Two amateur computer coders taken by police from their Beijing homes last year were standing trial Tuesday in a case that illustrates the Chinese government’s growing online censorship and heightened sensitivity to any…

NEW DELHI Dr. Gautam Singh dreads the daily advent of the ventilator beeps, signaling that oxygen levels are critically low, and hearing his desperately ill patients start gasping for air in the New Delhi emergency ward where he works.…

NEW DELHI India’s crematoriums and burial grounds are being overwhelmed by the devastating new surge of infections tearing through the populous country with terrifying speed, depleting the supply of life-saving oxygen to critical levels…

NEW DELHI A fire broke out in a hospital in western India early Friday, killing 13 COVID-19 patients, as an extreme surge in infections leaves the nation short of medical care and oxygen. India reported more than 314,000 new…

In his first official acts as president, Joe Biden is signing executives orders on a broad range of issues, from the coronavirus pandemic to climate change and immigration, to fulfill campaign promises. Highlights of actions Biden is…

JAKARTA, Indonesia A firebrand cleric who inspired bombings in Bali and other attacks walked free from an Indonesian prison Friday after completing his sentence for funding the training of Islamic militants. Police said they will…

The COVID-19 pandemic has made the global economy more fragile by affecting both supply and demand, Turkey’s trade minister said Thursday. The world has recently been facing unprecedented difficulties due to the pandemic, Ruhsar Pekcan…

CHANDIGARH, India Amid the country's coronavirus count crossing 7.3 million, movie theaters along with additional activities started in several parts of the country on Thursday as part of allowing the fifth round of easing the…

The Group of 20 nations, representing the world’s biggest economies, has approved the extension of debt payment by an additional six months, aiming to protect the most vulnerable countries in fighting the pandemic. According to a…

ROME Europe’s second wave of coronavirus infections has struck well before flu season even started, with intensive care wards filling up again and bars shutting down. Making matters worse, authorities say, is a widespread case of…

JERUSALEM The Israeli government has extended an emergency provision that bars public gatherings, including widespread protests against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for an additional week. Government ministers approved the…

SALT LAKE CITYVice President Mike Pence defended the Trump administration’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic that has killed more than 210,000 Americans Wednesday night, while his Democratic challenger, Kamala Harris, condemned “the…

We’re still learning, but it seems that much of the spread of the coronavirus has been caused by what disease trackers call superspreader events.That’s when a single person infects a large number of other people, or when a gathering is…

WASHINGTON The West Wing is a ghost town. Staff members are scared of exposure. And the White House is now a treatment ward for not one — but two — COVID patients, including a president who has long taken the threat of the virus lightly.…

North Korea on Tuesday called on the world’s governments to “display effective leadership” in the fight against COVID-19 and said its own measures against the pandemic, which it called “preemptive, timely and strong,” ensured it had the…

The worldwide death toll from the coronavirus has eclipsed 1 million, nine months into a crisis that has devastated the global economy, tested world leaders’ resolve, pitted science against politics and forced multitudes to change the way…

MEXICO CITY Mexico’s top coronavirus official said Sunday that definitive data on the country’s death toll from COVID-19 won’t be available for “a couple of years.” The statement by Assistant Health Secretary Hugo López-Gatell is likely…

NEW DELHI India has reported another 86,052 coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, a declining trend with recoveries exceeding daily infections this week. The Health Ministry raised the nation’s confirmed total to more than 5.8 million…

UNITED NATIONS The United States butted heads with China and Russia at the United Nations on Thursday over responsibility for the pandemic that has interrupted the world, trading allegations about who mishandled and politicized the virus…

It appears the virus can spread among children and teens, but how easily may vary by age. Research is still underway, but children under age 10 seem to be less likely than older kids to transmit the virus to other children and adults.…

NEW DELHI India has recorded nearly 87,000 new cases of the coronavirus in the past 24 hours, with another 1,130 deaths. With the Health Ministry announcement Monday, India now has more than 5.4 million reported cases since the pandemic…

Brazil reported 739 more fatalities from the novel coronavirus, while Mexico saw 455 over the past 24 hours, health authorities said late Saturday. In Brazil, the third worst-hit country in the world after India in terms of cases, the…

MUMBAI India’s coronavirus case tally surged to 5.4 million as it added 92,605 new infections in the last 24 hours, data from the federal health ministry showed on Sunday. The country has posted the highest single-day caseload in the…

TOKYO Train stations and airports in Japan were filled with people over this “Silver Week” holiday weekend running through Tuesday, in a sign of recovering local travel amid the coronavirus pandemic. The surge of domestic travel is a…

NEW DELHI India has maintained its surge in coronavirus cases, adding 93,337 new confirmed infections in the past 24 hours. The Health Ministry on Saturday raised the nation’s caseload to more than 5.3 million out of the nearly 1.4…

LIMA, Peru Peruvian President Martín Vizcarra’s job is on the line Friday as opposition lawmakers push through an impeachment hearing criticized as a hasty and poorly timed ouster attempt in one of the countries hardest hit by the…

DHAKA,Bangladesh A rebound in garment orders after demand crashed during spring shutdowns is helping to revive the Bangladesh economy. Apparel makers, the country’s main export industry, say they are looking ahead to Christmas orders from…

UNITED NATIONS The World Food Program chief warned Thursday that millions of people are closer to starvation because of the deadly combination of conflict, climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic and he urged donor nations and…

NEW DELHI After recording over 90,000 daily coronavirus cases for the past five days, India on Tuesday saw a slight drop in the daily figures as it registered 83,809 new infections over the last 24 hours. According to the Health…

NEW DELHI After a five-month absence, Indian lawmakers returned to Parliament on Monday with the government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, the nosediving economy and simmering tensions with China setting the stage for a…

UNITED NATIONS The U.N. General Assembly overwhelmingly approved a wide-ranging resolution on tackling the coronavirus pandemic Friday over objections from the United States and Israel, which protested a successful last-minute Cuban…

 JENNIFER SINCO KELLEHER HONOLULU: I remember setting out for a late afternoon run and the overpowering perfume of plumerias from the tree outside my house. That’s the moment I knew something was up. Normally, for me, getting a whiff of…

NEW DELHI India has recorded another single-day record of new coronavirus cases, reporting 75,760 new confirmed infections in the past 24 hours. The Health Ministry on Thursday also reported 1,023 deaths in the past 24 hours, taking total…

The office you once knew is likely to look vastly different. Companies are taking a variety of steps to keep people a safe distance apart, such as using staggered shifts or asking people to come in on alternating days. Cubicles may also…

TOKYO Japan’s exports plunged 19.2% in July from a year earlier, as the coronavirus pandemic sapped global demand for goods from the third largest economy, government data showed Wednesday. The Finance Ministry’s provisional numbers…

There’s no evidence you can get COVID-19 from the water itself. But since the virus may linger on surfaces, experts say to avoid fountains if you can or to limit any direct contact when using them. In New York City, for example, posters…

It depends on a variety of factors, but there are ways to minimize risk. The main way that the virus spreads is through droplets people spray when they talk, cough or sneeze. That means the best way to reduce the spread of infection on…

MEXICO CITY Ecuador’s biggest city, Guayaquil, was a pandemic hellscape of makeshift morgues, hundreds dying at home, bodies left in the street. That was in March and April, when the country’s economic hub on the Pacific coast suffered as…

It depends on how widespread COVID-19 infections are in the community and the safety measures the school takes. In areas where the virus is poorly controlled, public health experts say in-person education would be too risky. In areas where…

TOKYO Toyota’s profit plunged 74% in the last quarter as the coronavirus pandemic sank vehicle sales to about half of what the top Japanese automaker sold the previous year. Toyota Motor Corp. reported on Thursday a profit of 158.8…

BEIJING Global markets and U.S. stock futures rose Wednesday amid investor concern about U.S. stimulus spending and a trade agreement with Beijing. London and Frankfurt opened higher, while Shanghai, Hong Kong and Seoul rose. Tokyo…

BRASILIA, Brazil Brazil’s extreme poverty has plunged due to a monthly federal handout during the coronavirus pandemic, but threatens to bounce back once the government ceases the stopgap welfare program, a report said Tuesday. The study…

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump in recent days suddenly acknowledged the gravity of the coronavirus pandemic and edged away from some of his most audacious falsehoods about it. That’s not to say he gave the public an honest accounting.…

BAGHDAD At 24, Sama al-Diwani and her college sweetheart had big dreams. He was working on opening a bakery in Iraq. She was preparing to leave to England, where she would spend a year working on her masters’ degree in pharmacy. After…

MANILA, Philippines Hundreds of protesters in the Philippine capital marched and staged motorcades Monday against a new anti-terror law and other issues despite police threats of arrests ahead of President Rodrigo Duterte’s annual state of…

JERUSALEM Thousands of Israelis held several demonstrations across the country against their prime minister Saturday, with the main protest taking place in Jerusalem outside the official residence of Benjamin Netanyahu. The protests have…

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina Even before the new coronavirus hit, Argentina’s health care workers were struggling, most of them often working more than 12 hours a day at multiple jobs to make ends meet amid the country’s overheated inflation.…

JOHANNESBURG Global hot spot South Africa is seeing a “huge discrepancy” between confirmed COVID-19 deaths and much higher excess deaths from natural causes, while Africa’s top health official says the coronavirus is spreading there “like…

MITO, Japan World shares were mostly lower on Wednesday on renewed worries over surging coronavirus caseloads in many countries. U.S. futures also edged lower, though President Donald Trump’s statement that the pandemic will likely get…

It depends on where you live and the precautions you and the gym take. If cases of COVID-19 are poorly controlled where you live, experts say it’s best to stay away. But if you live in an area where the spread is being contained, there are…

Manila, Philippines As an educator for five years now, grade school teacher Rolyn Catanus-Gantalao of Negros Oriental had become dependent on routine activities. So when the province was locked down in March because of the pandemic, the…

TOKYO Asian shares were mostly lower Monday as investors cautiously eyed the summit of European leaders discussing the pandemic crisis and coronavirus cases continued to soar in the U.S. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 lost 0.4% in early…

BERLIN The coronavirus pandemic has found fresh legs around the world, as confirmed deaths pass 600,000 and countries from the U.S. to South Africa to India struggle to contain a surge of new infections. Hong Kong issued tougher new rules…

WASHINGTON It stands as the biggest economic rescue in U.S. history, the $2.2 trillion coronavirus relief bill swiftly approved by Congress in the spring. And it’s painfully clear now, as the pandemic worsens, it was only the start. With…

ASTRID GALVAN PHOENIX It was the day after April Fool’s when I stared at a tiny window on a pregnancy test and watched a very clear plus sign quickly appear. I sprinted from my side of the house to my husband’s office (see: bathroom),…

Delta Air Lines lost $5.7 billion during a brutal three-month stretch in which the coronavirus pandemic brought travel to a near standstill, and any hoped-for recovery has been smothered by a resurgence of infected Americans. “Growth has…

JAKARTA, Indonesia To slow the spread of the coronavirus, governments issued lockdowns to keep people at home. They curtailed activities that affected services like trash collection. They tried to shield hospitals from a surge of patients.…

The Cambodian government is using the coronavirus pandemic as a pretext to ramp up a crackdown on human rights defenders and environmental activists, two leading watchdogs charged on Thursday. Rights activists, labor leaders and…

BEIJING Two World Health Organization experts were heading to the Chinese capital on Friday to lay the groundwork for an investigation into the origins of the coronavirus pandemic. An animal health expert and an epidemiologist will meet…

Dentists can’t eliminate all risk, but they are taking steps to minimize the chances of spreading the coronavirus. You’ll likely notice changes as soon as you enter the office. Many dentists have removed magazines from waiting rooms, for…

President Donald Trump on Tuesday launched an all-out effort pressing state and local officials to reopen schools this fall, arguing that some are keeping schools closed not because of the risks from the coronavirus pandemic but for…

TOKYO Markets were mostly lower in Asia on Tuesday as expanding coronavirus outbreaks dimmed hopes for a global recovery, despite an overnight rally in tech shares that pushed the Nasdaq composite to another record high. Japan’s benchmark…

There is some risk, but health officials say there are precautions you can take to minimize the chances you’ll be exposed to the virus. Ordering takeout or delivery is still the safest option for getting restaurant food, according to the…

WARSAW, Poland The coronavirus has ripped through Poland’s coal mines, where men descend deep underground in tightly packed elevators and work shoulder-to-shoulder to extract the source of 75% of the nation’s electrical power. Of Poland’s…

TEHRAN, Iran Iran on Sunday instituted mandatory mask-wearing as fears mount over newly spiking reported deaths from the coronavirus, even as its public increasingly shrugs off the danger of the COVID-19 illness it causes. Supreme Leader…

TOKYO Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike has won a second term to head the Japanese capital, buoyed to Sunday’s election victory by public support for her coronavirus handling despite a recent rise in infections that has raised concerns of a…

SINGAPORE Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong called Tuesday for early elections to seek a fresh mandate despite the coronavirus pandemic. Lee said in a televised speech that he has advised the country’s president to dissolve…

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates Muslims around the world hoping for a once-in-a-lifetime journey to Mecca to perform the hajj will have to wait until next year, after Saudi Arabia drastically curtailed the pilgrimage due to the coronavirus…

MOSCOW A massive Russian military parade postponed by the coronavirus pandemic will roll through Red Square this week to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe, even though Russia is still registering a steady…

JUBA, South Sudan It began with a dry cough, weakness and back pain. For Reagan Taban Augustino, part of South Sudan’s small corps of health workers trained in treating COVID-19 patients, there was little doubt what he had. Days later,…

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump falsely told supporters Saturday night that Democratic rival Joe Biden apologized for opposing his restrictions on travel from China early in the coronavirus pandemic. On multiple fronts, the revival of…

LINDSAY WHITEHURST ALT LAKE CITY The day his boss looked over at the TV screen and gave a forlorn nod at the plunging red lines of the stock market, my husband could feel the layoff coming. It was a gut punch when it hit our family, like…

Pashupati Chaudhary The outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic has created a global health crisis that has a deep impact on world and everyday lives. Human are inherently social being, so, they prefer to have social life. due to this pandemic, the…

SINGAPORE Singaporeans can wine and dine at restaurants, work out at the gym and socialize with no more than five people at a time as of Friday, when the city-state removed most of its pandemic lockdown restrictions. The latest relaxation…

JOHANNESBURG South Africa now faces two pandemics, COVID-19 and the violence against women and children that has risen sharply since alcohol sales were allowed again on June 1, the president said Wednesday as he announced further easing of…

WASHINGTON Seizing on a medical milestone that doesn’t exist, President Donald Trump said Tuesday he thinks the same scientific expertise that produced a vaccine for AIDS can deliver one soon for COVID-19, too. There is no vaccine for…

Brussels, Belgium Broadcasters, publishers and journalists called on the European Commission on Monday to implement "much stronger measures" to combat disinformation on internet platforms such as Google and Facebook. A joint declaration,…

London, United Kingdom Britain's Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her official birthday on Saturday in subdued style, with a scaled down version of the traditional "Trooping the Colour" ceremony due to the coronavirus pandemic. The…

The Kingdom Saudi Arabia, for the first time in modern history, is mulling over cancelling the Hajj pilgrimage after the country's cases surpassed 100,000, Financial Times reported. “The issue has been carefully studied and different…

Jakarta When Amelia Vindy, 25, and Ronggo Wanggori, 26, planned their wedding, they visualized a typical Indonesian ceremony: a lavish banquet with around 700 guests of extended family and friends from various circles. The wedding, which…

NEW DELHI A group of students protesting a controversial citizenship law in India accused the government of continuing to "witch-hunt" although the country is being enmeshed in COVID-19 pandemic. Organizer of the protest against the law…

Dhaka, Bangladesh Millions of children are at risk of being pushed into child labour due to the Covid-19 crisis, which could lead to the first increase in child labour after 20 years of progress, according to a new brief from the…

Malaysia on Thursday decided against sending people to the annual Islamic Hajj pilgrimage due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The decision was announced by Religious Affairs Minister Zulkifli Mohamad Al-Bakri during a news conference in…

HONG KONG China’s auto sales surged 14.5% in May, a second straight month of growth as the global industry’s biggest market gradually recovers from the coronavirus pandemic. The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said Thursday…

MEXICO CITY Mexico City pledged Wednesday to start mass testing to reach 100,000 tests per month by July, while the federal government appeared to stick by its policy of administering very few tests during the coronavirus pandemic. Mayor…

Starbucks expects to lose more than $3 billion in revenue in its fiscal third quarter due to the new coronavirus, but said the disruption to its business should subside through the rest of the year. “The Starbucks brand is resilient,…

SHANGHAI Scientists are scrutinising China's claims regarding the origins of the coronavirus as they examine the disease's genetic code to proxy data, such as cremations and internet searches for virus symptoms China has dismissed as…

ROME Dozens of grieving relatives of coronavirus' victims on Wednesday filed their complaints at the prosecutors’ offices in Italy’s northern city of Bergamo, denouncing serious failures by local politicians and health officials in…

SULEIMAN KHEL, Pakistan When Tariq Nawaz’s daughter was born a year ago, he borrowed money to pay for his wife’s cesarean delivery. Seven months later, they learned their baby had polio and sold the little bit of jewelry his wife had…

BANGKOK A Philippine peace award has been canceled this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, marking only the third disruption in six decades for the annual prize regarded as an Asian Nobel. The Manila-based foundation that hands out the…

MOSCOW As other nations in Europe report sharply lower new coronavirus cases, Russia has recorded nearly 9,000 new infections over the past day. The number is roughly in line with those reported over the past week as the spread of the…

The Swedish economy has taken a hit despite the country imposing no coronavirus lockdown. Unlike most countries, Sweden never locked down during the coronavirus pandemic, largely keeping businesses operating, but the economy appears to be…

BEIJING Senior Chinese officials released a lengthy report Sunday on the nation’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, defending their government’s actions and saying that China had provided information in a timely and transparent manner.…

RIO DE JANEIRO Brazil’s government has stopped publishing a running total of coronavirus deaths and infections in an extraordinary move that critics call an attempt to hide the true toll of the disease in Latin America’s largest nation.…

COLLEVILLE-SUR-MER, France At daybreak on Saturday, Charles Shay stood lonesome without any fellow veteran on the very same beach where he waded ashore 76 years ago, part of one of the most epic battles in military historic that came to be…

The World Health Organization (WHO) updated its guidance on Friday to recommend that governments ask everyone to wear fabric face masks in public areas where there is a risk of transmission of Covid-19 to help reduce the spread of the…

TOKYO Japan has kept its deaths from the new coronavirus low despite a series of missteps that beg the question of whether it can prevent future waves of infections. Authorities were criticized for bungling a cruise ship quarantine and…

FRANKFURT, Germany The European Central Bank has boosted its pandemic emergency support program by 600 billion euros to 1.35 trillion euros ($1.5 trillion) in an effort to keep affordable credit flowing to the economy during the steep…

KARACHI, Pakistan Pakistan's traditional mango exports take a hit from the economic havoc wreaked by the coronavirus pandemic, as exporters fear a huge decline in export of the fruit this year. Suspension of international flights, closure…

ROME Italy on Monday reported 60 more fatalities from the novel coronavirus, bringing the death toll to 33,475, as the debate over the risks of reopening the country’s internal and external borders next week heated up. The slowing trend…

Manila Philippine authorities on Monday eased coronavirus lockdown restrictions in the capital Manila after two months, local media reported. Markets across the city saw a rush of people, while traffic clogged highways and main…

ROME Hundreds of demonstrators blocked traffic and scuffled with police Saturday in central Rome as they protested against government institutions considered unfit to shield residents from the coronavirus pandemic fallout. Waving national…

BRUSSELS The chairperson of the Subcommittee of Human Rights of the European Parliament, in a letter to Indian Home Minister Amit Shah, has condemned the arrest of human rights defenders under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. In…

MINNEAPOLIS Tense protests over the death of George Floyd and other police killings of black men grew Saturday from New York to Tulsa to Los Angeles, with police cars set ablaze and reports of injuries mounting on all sides as the country…

Rio de Janeiro,Brazil Brazil now has the fifth highest death toll from COVID-19 worldwide, registering over 1,000 deaths in the past 24 hours and registering a hike in the total tally of new cases to 27,878, the government said on Friday…

WASHINGTON With new U.S. economic numbers highlighting the rough road ahead for a hoped-for rebound, President Donald Trump on Friday took aim at the World Health Organization and China, blaming both for their roles in the pandemic’s…

SEOUL, South Korea As Mediterranean beaches and Las Vegas casinos laid out plans to welcome tourists again, South Korea announced a spike in new infections Wednesday and considered reimposing social distancing restrictions, revealing the…

It was one of the most immediate consequences of the lockdown: more people stayed inside, fewer cars were on the street, and the air was suddenly cleaner. A report found that in Europe alone this saved 11,000 lives, whereas a study in China…

Muhammed Lutfi Turkcan As the COVID-19 pandemic swept across the world, most governments were caught unprepared for a health emergency on a global scale. Many authorities, lacking appropriate strategies and vital capacities, were slow to…

KIAMBU, Kenya A groovy rendition of “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands” blasts from speakers outside an apartment block in the outskirts of Kenya’s capital, Nairobi. Children, some in diapers, dance on the balconies above, accompanied…

RIO DE JANEIRO A surging coronavirus is ravaging parts of Latin America, setting records for cases and deaths Friday in some countries in the world’s most unequal region even as the pandemic’s march slows in much of Europe, Asia and the…

LONDON Oxford University announced that its COVID-19 vaccine has entered its next phases of human trials, according to a statement on Friday, as British health authorities announced that 351 more people died from the disease across the UK…

It was where it all started and now it’s time to change things up. The city of Wuhan, China, where the novel coronavirus first surface, has now introduced a ban on the hunting and eating of wild animals. The ban follows growing pressure on…

TOKYO Japan’s central bank said Friday it will provide some 30 trillion yen ($280 billion) to banks for financing small and medium-size businesses battling economic hardships brought on by the coronavrius pandemic. The Bank of Japan will…

MEXICO CITY Even as Mexico saw its largest one-day death toll, Mexico City announced Wednesday it will begin a gradual reopening June 1. The nationwide death toll rose by 424 on Wednesday to 6,090, well above last week’s record of 353…

TOKYO Recession-hit Japan’s exports plunged nearly 22% in April, the country’s worst drop in more than a decade as the coronavirus pandemic slammed global demand. The Finance Ministry also said Thursday that imports fell 7%. The…

ISTANBUL They see themselves as public health detectives, working 24/7 to track the coronavirus’ insidious spread through a country of 83 million, blending door-to-door hoof work with mobile apps, CCTV footage and, if needed, police…

WELLINGTON, New Zealand American car makers are getting back to work and Europe is continuing to reopen. But while new coronavirus cases have been declining in many countries that were initially hit hard by the pandemic, cases are rapidly…

SOAVE, Italy In separate, stark warnings, two major European leaders have bluntly told their citizens that the world needs to adapt to live with the coronavirus and cannot wait to be saved by the development of a vaccine. The comments by…

CHICAGO Artist Obi Uwakwe was driving through Chicago’s empty streets, camera on his lap to document life during COVID-19, when he saw something that made him stop: a casket being carried out of a church while a few mourners stood by,…

VENICE, Italy Venice geared up to receive tourists, Milan’s pizzerias prepared to open and Australians headed out to eat for the first time in weeks Saturday, but the reopening of restaurants, pubs and cafes came with a warning: Don’t…

KAMPALA, Uganda Burundi is pushing ahead with an election on Wednesday that will end the president’s divisive and bloody 15-year rule. When President Pierre Nkurunziza hands over power, it could be the first truly peaceful transfer of…

WASHINGTON For the first three years of his presidency, Donald Trump did not publicly utter the words “pandemic” or “preparedness.” Not in speeches, rallies or his many news conferences, planned and impromptu. But on Friday, the White…

ROME European governments promised more relief to their citizens on Thursday as a top U.S. immunologist told Congress that America faces its “darkest winter in modern history” unless leaders act decisively to prevent a rebound of the…

MOSCOW The number of coronavirus cases in Russia reached a staggering total of 242,271 with 10,028 new infections on Wednesday. The number of fatalities rose to 2,212 after 96 more people died over the last 24 hours, the emergency task…

As the aviation sector is forced to implement new measures to protect public health amid the tentative easing of lockdowns, the elimination of the middle seat to maintain social distance on passenger routes may wipe out budget airlines.…

BERLIN Chancellor Angela Merkel urged Germans on Wednesday not to endanger what the country has achieved in slowing the spread of the coronavirus, adding the pandemic will be with us for some time. “It would be depressing if we have to…

NEW YORK Throw a global pandemic at the world’s religions, and you get confessions via Skype, virtual seders and recitations of the Koran over Facebook. The world’s three leading religions have survived famines, plagues, pestilence and…

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump insisted Monday his administration has “met the moment” and “prevailed” on coronavirus testing, even as the White House itself became a potent symbol of the risk facing Americans everywhere by belatedly…

Presidential politics move fast. What we’re watching heading into a new week on the 2020 campaign: Days to general election: 176 THE NARRATIVE President Donald Trump’s reelection is facing growing headwinds less than six months before…

The coronavirus death toll in Iran rose to 6,640 with 51 more fatalities over the past 24 hours, state media reported on Sunday. A further of 1,383 people tested positive for COVID-19 over the past day, raising the overall count to…

Kabul The World Bank on Friday approved a USD 400 million grant to help Afghanistan "sustain the pace of key economic and public finance reforms and support the country to manage current risks and uncertainties compounded by the COVID-19…

BRUSSELS The European Union predicted Wednesday “a recession of historic proportions this year” due to the impact of the coronavirus with a drop in output of more than 7%, as it released its first official forecast of the damage the…

JERUSALEM As the coronavirus pandemic gathered strength last month, community leaders in a Palestinian neighborhood on the outskirts of Jerusalem tried to impose lockdown and quarantine measures to protect residents. The problem: there…

As governments around the world consider how to monitor new coronavirus outbreaks while reopening their societies, many are starting to bet on smartphone apps to help stanch the pandemic. But their decisions on which technologies to use —…

WASHINGTON Despite a century’s progress in science, 2020 is looking a lot like 1918. In the years between two lethal pandemics, one the misnamed Spanish flu, the other COVID-19, the world learned about viruses, cured various diseases,…

The number of registered coronavirus cases around the globe surpassed 3.5 million on Monday, according to the US-based Johns Hopkins University. With 1.15 million cases, the US stands as the country with the most officially confirmed…

WASHINGTON U.S. officials believe China covered up the extent of the coronavirus outbreak — and how contagious the disease is — to stock up on medical supplies needed to respond to it, intelligence documents show. Chinese leaders…

JERUSALEM Former Soviet dissident Natan Sharansky, winner of the 2020 Genesis Prize, announced Monday that he will donate the $1 million award to organizations fighting the coronavirus pandemic and assisting people most affected by the…

TEL AVIV, Israel Air travel to Israel has come to a near standstill due to coronavirus restrictions, but one type of voyage still endures: the final journey of Jews wishing to be buried in Israel. For centuries, Jews have sought to be…

NEW DELHI The spreading of the coronavirus in India’s notoriously crowded prisons has prompted authorities to impose jail lockdowns and release thousands of pretrial detainees on parole, as health experts worry that the cramped facilities…

SRINAGAR, INDIA Ramadan in India, which began April 25 in the country, has been marred by the rising Islamophobia following accusations that a surge in infections was tied to a three-day meeting in March in New Delhi of an Islamic…

BANGKOK As governments move forward with plans to ease coronavirus restrictions, health officials around the globe are calling on the public to remain vigilant so that hard-won victories in the battle against the pandemic are not lost.…

For millions of people around the world dealing with the coronavirus pandemic, sleep brings no relief. The horrors of COVID-19, and the surreal and frightening ways it has upended daily life, are infecting dreams and exposing feelings of…

PARIS France and Spain, two of the worst-hit countries in the coronavirus pandemic, were laying out separate roadmaps Tuesday for lifting their lockdowns, while signs emerged that the virus has been all but vanquished in New Zealand and…

JOHANNESBURG More than 200 doctors from Cuba have arrived in South Africa to help fight the COVID-19 pandemic. The doctors, including community health and infectious disease specialists, arrived early Monday morning and were welcomed by…

BIRMINGHAM, England The holy month of Ramadan is underway, and the Central Jamia Mosque Ghamkol Sharif in Birmingham should be full of worshippers. But this year, the main arrivals are the dead. While the mosque in the central England…

It is a part of the Japanese culture to wear masks and maintain “utmost” cleanliness during the routine life, so COVID-19 pandemic did not change much in the country. “The only issue is there is no aggressive testing of people to determine…

Iran reported 60 new deaths from coronavirus, bringing the toll to 5,710, state media said on Sunday. A total of 1,153 more people tested positive for COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, bringing the total infections to 90,481, Iran's state…

OVIEDO, Spain Spain registered its lowest daily death toll in more than a month on Sunday, coinciding with the first day that children are allowed to leave their homes in six weeks. In the last 24-hour period, 288 more people were…

SAVANNAH, Ga. The U.S. states of Georgia, Oklahoma and Alaska began loosening lockdown orders on their pandemic-wounded businesses, even as the confirmed U.S. death toll from the coronavirus soared past 50,000 and despite warnings from…

KARACHI, Pakistan Pakistan on Friday extended until May 9 the ongoing lockdown aimed at stemming the fast-increasing coronavirus cases in the country. Asad Umar, Minister for Planning and Development, announced the decision taken by the…

NEW DELHI Muslims in India will mark the holy month of Ramadan amid the coronavirus lockdown avoiding congregational prayers at mosques. Ramadan is due to start in the country on April 25 or 26 depending on the sighting of Moon. Muslims…

TEHRAN, Iran For some $15 a day, deliverymen don masks and gloves in Iran’s capital to zip across its pandemic-subdued streets to drop off groceries and food for those sheltering at home from the virus. Like the wider Mideast, from…

WASHINGTON America’s entrenched political divide is now playing out over matters of life and death. Republican governors, urged on by President Donald Trump, are taking the first steps toward reopening parts of their states’ economies in…

BEIJING China on Wednesday again reported no new deaths from the coronavirus, but registered 30 more cases — 23 of them brought from abroad. Of the domestic cases, all seven were reported in Heilongjiang province near the Russian border…

London One more Nepali has died due to coronavirus here in Britain. He is 49-year-old Bijaya Gurung. He died while under treatment at the Royal Berkshire Hospital, according to Nanda Gurung, president of Redding Tamu Society. It is said…

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka Sri Lanka has ordered all liquor stores to close indefinitely, as a part of its stringent measures aimed at containing the spread of the new coronavirus. The government’s decision came amid warnings by the doctors’…

JOHANNESBURG The U.N. General Assembly demanded global action to quickly scale up the development of and access to medicines, vaccines and equipment to battle the pandemic, while the World Health Organization warned Tuesday that rushing to…

PARIS Media watchdog Reporters Without Borders is sounding the alarm that the coronavirus pandemic poses a threat for press freedom around the world. In its annual evaluation of global media freedoms, the group warned Tuesday that the…

JERUSALEM With the global coronavirus pandemic ravaging the elderly, Israel’s aging population of Holocaust survivors finds itself on the country’s annual Holocaust Remembrance Day this year much like they were during World War II — alone…

BRUSSELS Currently, 4,920 patients are treated in hospitals in Belgium's, with 1,071 of them in intensive care units, the health authorities announced on Monday. While 232 patients were admitted to hospitals, 138 were discharged after…

TORONTO A man wearing a police uniform went on a shooting rampage in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia on Sunday, killing 13 people, in the deadliest such attack in the country in 30 years. Officials said the suspected shooter was also…

ISLAMABAD Even as Pakistan’s daily confirmed cases inches upward, Prime Minister Imran Khan’s government buckled to pressure from religious clerics refusing to order mosques throughout the country closed during Islamic fasting month of…

ROME Passengers on a luxury liner’s around-the-world cruise, begun before the globe was gripped by the coronavirus pandemic, are finally approaching the end of their odyssey after 15 weeks at sea. Their ship, the Costa Deliziosa, heads to…

BEIJING China has reported 27 new confirmed cases of COVID-19, as it tries to stem an upsurge in infections in a northeastern province bordering Russia. Twenty of the new cases were in Heilongjiang province, including 13 Chinese nationals…

TOKYO Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced a state of emergency for all of Japan. Abe says the measure takes effect Friday and lasts until May 6, the end of Japan’s “golden week” holidays. He says the nationwide state of…

BEIJING China won’t restrict exports of medical goods needed to fight the coronavirus pandemic, a government spokesman said Thursday, amid global tension over scarce masks and ventilators. China, the biggest maker of surgical masks and…

JOHANNESBURG More than 1 million coronavirus tests will be rolled out starting next week in Africa to address the “big gap” in assessing the true number of cases on the continent, the head of the African Centers for Disease Control and…

PARIS Economic pain from the coronavirus pandemic spread even more widely Thursday, weighing heavily on nations, businesses and ordinary people as countries struggled to restore confidence that stores, factories, airplanes and schools…

NEW DELHI Lavina D’Souza hasn’t been able to collect her government-supplied anti-HIV medication since the abrupt lockdown of India’s 1.3 billion people last month during the coronavirus outbreak. Marooned in a small city away from her…

WASHINGTON In late February when President Donald Trump was urging Americans not to panic over the novel coronavirus, alarms were sounding at a little-known intelligence unit situated on a U.S. Army base an hour’s drive north of…

GENEVA Nations around the world reacted with alarm Wednesday after President Donald Trump announced a halt to the sizable funding the United States sends to the World Health Organization. Health experts warned the move could jeopardize…

TEHRAN, Iran The death toll in Iran from the coronavirus pandemic is likely nearly double the officially reported figures, due to undercounting and because not everyone with breathing problems has been tested for the virus, a parliament…

In the six days after top Chinese officials secretly determined they likely were facing a pandemic from a new coronavirus, the city of Wuhan at the epicenter of the disease hosted a mass banquet for tens of thousands of people; millions…

Pandemics throughout history have led to changes in healthcare systems, the socioeconomic status of communities and even regimes, according to a Turkish historian, who said the novel coronavirus outbreak may bring similar changes to the…

CAIRO Egypt’s chief prosecutor late Sunday ordered 23 people to remain in detention for 15 days pending an investigation into blocking a road to a cemetery in a Nile Delta village to prevent the burial of a physician who died from the…

MONTCLAIR, N.J. Presidential politics move fast. What we’re watching heading into a new week on the 2020 campaign: Days to general election: 204 THE NARRATIVE More people have died of COVID-19 in the United States than in any other…

STOCKHOLM Crowds swarm Stockholm’s waterfront, with some people sipping cocktails in the sun. In much of the world, this sort of gathering would be frowned upon or even banned. Not in Sweden. It doesn’t worry Anders Tegnell, the…

MADRID The spread of the coronavirus outbreak in Spain continues to slow down, with 517 new deaths recorded overnight and with the lowest number of infections logged in more than three weeks, nearly 3,500. The Spanish health ministry’s…

TOKYO South Korean officials warned Monday that hard-earned progress fighting the coronavirus pandemic could be upset by new infections at bars and leisure spots, highlighting global tensions between governments desperate to maintain…

WASHINGTON By the time President Donald Trump first spoke publicly about the coronavirus, it may already have been too late. Interviewed at Davos, a gathering of global elites in the Swiss Alps, the president on Jan. 22 played down the…

BARCELONA, Spain The world celebrated Easter at a distance on Sunday, with most churches closed and family gatherings canceled amid wide-ranging coronavirus shutdowns. Huge uncertainties loomed about the outlook not just for the next few…

ISTANBUL Police across Turkey are conducting routine ID checks on the streets, stopping anyone who looks under 20 or over 65 as they enforce a coronavirus curfew for the young and the elderly. Yet factory workers are still going to their…

CARACAS, Venezuela Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro has extended a nationwide quarantine for another 30 days to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus throughout the crisis-stricken South American nation. Maduro announced the…

NEW YORK LGBT New Yorkers who lived through the AIDS crisis of the 1980s see some bleak parallels in the COVID-19 pandemic now wracking their city. But more so, they stress the differences. Now, they share the same plight as their fellow…

NEW YORK The coronavirus crisis is taxing New York City’s 911 system like never before. Operators pick up a new call every 15.5 seconds. Panicked voices tell of loved ones in declining health. There are multitudes of cardiac arrests and…

BENI, Congo Congo has been battling an Ebola outbreak that has killed thousands of people for more than 18 months, and now it must also face a new scourge: the coronavirus pandemic. Ebola has left those living in the country’s east weary…

CAIRO Yemen’s internationally recognized government Friday announced the first confirmed case of coronavirus in the war-torn country, stoking fears that an outbreak could devastate an already crippled health care system. Yemen’s Minister…

WASHINGTON Pick-up basketball games. Crowds gathering at an outdoor fish market. Family hikes along trails in Rock Creek Park. The warmer weather is bringing violations of social distance guidelines in the nation’s capital, even as health…

ROME Maddalena Ferrari lets herself cry when she takes off the surgical mask she wears even at home to protect her elderly parents from the coronavirus that surrounds her at work in one of Italy’s hardest-hit intensive care units. In the…

WUHAN, China After 11 weeks of lockdown, the first train departed Wednesday morning from a re-opened Wuhan, the origin point for the coronavirus pandemic, as residents once again were allowed to travel in and out of the sprawling central…

Hong Kong Hong Kong will continue to be closed to foreigners, extending the initial two-week entry restrictions on non-residents indefinitely. Non-residents coming from overseas to Hong Kong by plane will be denied entry, and those coming…

BAGHDAD Mohammed al-Dulfi’s 67-year-old father died on March 21 after a brief struggle against the new coronavirus, but it would take nine days for his body to find a final resting place in the Shiite holy city of Najaf in southern Iraq.…

The outbreak of the coronavirus has dealt a shock to the global economy with unprecedented speed. Following are developments Monday related to the global economy, the work place and the spread of the virus. CENTRAL BANKS AND GOVERNMENT:…

BEIJING China on Tuesday reported no new deaths from the coronavirus over the past 24 hours and just 32 new cases, all from people who returned from overseas. Another 12 suspected cases — also all imported — were being kept under…

TOKYO Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said that he will declare a state of emergency for Tokyo and six other prefectures as early as Tuesday to bolster measures to fight the coronavirus, but that there will be no hard lockdowns. Abe…

WASHINGTON The Trump administration is seizing the opportunity of the coronavirus pandemic to push a cause that has long been an irritant in U.S. relations with China: Taiwan. The virus has added yet another dimension to U.S.-China…

UNITED NATIONS United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says there has been “a horrifying global surge in domestic violence” in recent weeks as fear of the coronavirus pandemic has grown along with its social and economic…

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump is pitching an unapproved medicine for COVID-19 sufferers that science has not concluded is effective or safe. “Take it,” he said of the drug. For people sick with the coronavirus, he said Sunday, “It can…

WASHINGTON As the first alarms sounded in early January that an outbreak of a novel coronavirus in China might ignite a global pandemic, the Trump administration squandered nearly two months that could have been used to bolster the federal…

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump warned Saturday that the country could be headed into its “toughest” weeks yet as the coronavirus death toll mounts, but at the same time he expressed growing impatience with social distancing guidelines…

NEW YORK The New York governor said Saturday the Chinese government was facilitating a shipment of 1,000 donated ventilators to his state, highlighting the extreme measures leaders are taking in what has become a cutthroat scramble to…

KATHMANDU, Nepal Hundreds of stranded tourists have been flown out of Nepal days after complete lockdown was imposed in the country. According to Tribhuvan International Airport, planes chartered by German, French and Malaysian…

WUHAN, China With air raid sirens wailing and flags at half-mast, China on Saturday held a three-minute nationwide moment of reflection to honor those who have died in the coronavirus outbreak, especially “martyrs” who fell while fighting…

BEIJING Chinese court has sentenced a man to 18 months in jail for failing to report traveling abroad from March 1-6, refusing to answer phone calls from authorities and having his mother lie about his activities, according to a joint…

NEW YORK The Trump administration urged Americans to cover their faces in public and limited exports of medical supplies Friday as New York’s governor took his own dramatic step to fight the coronavirus — vowing to seize unused ventilators…

MADRID Setting up makeshift ICU wards in libraries and conference centers, embattled European medical workers strained Friday to save thousands of desperately ill coronavirus patients as stocks of medicine, protective equipment and…

BEIJING China will honor those who have died in the fight against coronavirus and all victims of the outbreak with three minutes of silence on Saturday, as numbers of new cases in the country where the global pandemic began fall toward…

WARSAW, Poland Poland’s parliament is preparing to vote Friday on legislation that would transform the country’s May presidential election entirely into a mail-in ballot due to the health risks of having public voting stations during the…

SEOUL, South Korea South Korea has reported 86 new cases of the coronavirus, bringing its caseload above 10,000. South Korea’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday said about half of the new cases came from the densely…

COVID-19 pandemic, which first occurred in China and turned into a global disaster spreading across the whole world, poses a great danger to African countries that do not have proper and robust health infrastructure. The outbreak, which was…

JERUSALEM The new coronavirus is forcing more top Israeli officials into isolation after the country’s health minister, who has had frequent contact with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, tested positive, the Health Ministry said…

WUHAN, China Since the coronavirus outbreak, life in China is ruled by a green symbol on a smartphone screen. Green is the “health code” that says a user is symptom-free and it’s required to board a subway, check into a hotel or just…

We have known for a long time that hardships are indicative of strengths and weaknesses, the greatness and the baseness of individuals or societies who face them. The COVID-19 outbreak unsurprisingly also revealed in France, among the…

KARACHI, Pakistan Pakistan on Wednesday announced a two-week extension in an ongoing lockdown in the wake of rising numbers of coronavirus cases in the country. "The government has decided to continue the current restrictions on public…

The coronavirus pandemic is “far from over” in the Asia-Pacific region, a World Health Organization (WHO) official said. "The epidemic is far from over in Asia and the Pacific. This is going to be a long-term battle and we cannot let down…

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka Sri Lanka’s president Gotabaya Rajapaksa is requesting that international financial organizations provide debt moratorium or debt deferment facilities to developing nations such as Sri Lanka, which are adversely affected…

UNITED NATIONS How should the U.N. General Assembly and its 193 member states respond to the coronavirus pandemic? Members have been sent two rival resolutions for consideration — and under new voting rules instituted because the global…

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump on Tuesday warned Americans to brace for a “hell of a bad two weeks” ahead as the White House projected there could be 100,000 to 240,000 deaths in the U.S. from the coronavirus pandemic even if current…

As increasing numbers of European hospitals buckle under the strain of tens of thousands of coronavirus patients, the crisis has exposed a surprising paradox: Some of the world’s best health systems are remarkably ill-equipped to handle a…

NEW DELHI A neighborhood in the Indian capital where a religious sect is headquartered has been sealed off from outsiders after police evacuated more than 1,000 people believed to have been exposed to the coronavirus during a religious…

BELGRADE, Serbia Soldiers patrol the streets with their fingers on machine gun triggers. The army guards an exhibition center-turned-makeshift-hospital crowded with rows of metal beds for those infected with the coronavirus. And Serbia’s…

SRINAGAR,India In the wake of growing COVID-19 cases in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir, many migrant workers who are stuck in the region are making desperate appeals to the government for food and transportation. Musharraf Shareef,…

WASHINGTON Bracing the nation for a death toll that could exceed 100,000 people, President Donald Trump on Sunday extended restrictive social distancing guidelines through April, bowing to public-health experts who presented him with even…

WASHINGTON Groundless assurances keep coming from President Donald Trump, a rosy outlier on the science of the coronavirus pandemic. It’s been that way since before the virus spread widely in the United States, when he supposed that the…

Something was wrong. The chow hall line at New York’s Rikers Island jail had halted. For three hours, the men stood and waited, without food, until a correctional officer quietly delivered the news: A civilian chef was among those who…

The Latest on the coronavirus pandemic. The new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms for most people. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness or death. BEIJING…

ROME Their eyes are tired. Their cheekbones rubbed raw from protective masks. They don’t smile. The doctors and nurses on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic in Italy are almost unrecognizable behind their masks, scrubs, gloves…

TEHRAN, Iran Standing over the still body of an intubated 5-year-old boy wearing nothing but a plastic diaper, an Iranian health care worker in a hazmat suit and mask begged the public for just one thing: Stop drinking industrial alcohol…

TORONTO Canada said Thursday it told the Trump administration that a proposal to put troops at the U.S.-Canada border amid the coronavirus pandemic was entirely unnecessary and would damage relations between the two longtime allies. The…

NEW YORK U.S. deaths from the coronavirus pandemic topped 1,000 in another grim milestone for a global outbreak that is taking lives and wreaking havoc on economies and the established routines of ordinary life. In a recognition of the…

WASHINGTON The White House and Senate leaders of both major political parties announced agreement early Wednesday on an unprecedented $2 trillion emergency bill to rush sweeping aid to businesses, workers and a health care system slammed…

MADRID The death toll in Spain from the coronavirus shot up by more than 700 on Wednesday, surpassing China and is now second only to Italy as the pandemic spread rapidly in Europe, with even Britain’s Prince Charles testing positive for…

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip As Western countries reeling from the coronavirus pandemic awaken to a new reality of economic collapse, overwhelmed hospitals, grounded flights and home confinement, it’s tempting to think the end of days is at hand.…

KABUL, Afghanistan At least four service members of the NATO-led Resolute Support mission in Afghanistan tested positive for the novel coronavirus, the alliance confirmed on Tuesday. In a brief statement, the mission said these are the…

Several European nations are evaluating powerful but potentially intrusive tools for fighting the coronavirus pandemic, a move that could put public health at odds with individual privacy. The tools in question are apps that would use…

WASHINGTON A series of missteps at the nation’s top public health agency caused a critical shortage of reliable laboratory tests for the coronavirus, hobbling the federal response as the pandemic spread across the country like wildfire.…

CHICAGO For Jalen Grimes, the virus pandemic is stirring up a slew of emotions. “Annoyed” is the first one the 13-year-old Chicagoan mentions. “Scared, confused, worried.” She was supposed to be enjoying the end of her eighth-grade year,…

Beijing China said Friday it did not receive financial support from the U.S. for efforts to curb the coronavirus outbreak. “US officials said they offered $100 million to China and other countries. We thank the American people for their…

PARIS Southern Europe buckled under the strain of the coronavirus pandemic on Friday, with gasping patients filling the wards of hospitals in Spain and Italy as the global death toll surpassed 10,000 people worldwide. In the U.S.,…

World Food Program chief and former Governor of South Carolina David Beasley tested positive for the novel coronavirus known as COVID-19, he announced Friday. “I want you to be among the first to know that in the past few hours I have…

LONDON Researchers at Oxford University are developing a coronavirus vaccine, aiming to have it ready by the end of the year, with a safety trial on humans as early as next month, according to British daily The Guardian. The university’s…

The Latest on the coronavirus pandemic, which has infected more than 244,000 people and killed more than 10,000. The COVID-19 illness causes mild or moderate symptoms in most people, but severe symptoms are more likely in the elderly or…

The Latest on the coronavirus pandemic, which has infected more than 215,000 people and killed more than 8,700. The COVID-19 illness causes mild or moderate symptoms in most people, but severe symptoms are more likely in the elderly or…

WASHINGTON Racing to stall an expected surge of coronavirus cases, the White House on Monday released a series of sweeping guidelines that for the next 15 days will temporarily rewrite the norms of American society. President Donald…

TOKYO Millions of people began holing up at home, stocking up on supplies and keeping a wary eye on how close they get to friends and neighbors as fear of the coronavirus spread to more places around the world Monday. Resorts closed on…

ROME Meeting with friends, dining out, worshiping and other daily routines have nearly halted as nations take drastic steps to try to stop the coronavirus pandemic. Religious leaders gave sermons to empty pews or to the faithful watching…

WASHINGTON Former Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders sought in Sunday’s Democratic debate to cast themselves as best-positioned to lead the nation through a global pandemic, uniting in their criticism of President Donald…

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates Saudi Arabia said Saturday that it would halt all international flights to the kingdom for two weeks in the latest effort to contain the spread of the new coronavirus. Gulf nations have been scrambling to…

BEIJING As the rest of the world mobilized to fight the widening coronavirus pandemic on Saturday, China continued to ease up lockdown measures in its hardest-hit region, where the number of new cases has dwindled. The virus that first…

MADRID, Spain Tens of millions of students stayed home on three continents, security forces went on standby to guard against large gatherings of people, and bars, restaurants and offices closed Friday to slow the spread of the coronavirus…

NEW YORK Schools shut down across much of Europe. Gatherings were canceled or banned from California to Germany. And the coronavirus reached directly into the world’s centers of power Thursday, with politicians in Canada, Brazil, Spain and…

People around the world have become increasingly isolated from each other due to a mounting number of travel bans, school closures and canceled sporting events. REGIONS ARE BEING KEPT APART A day after the World Health Organization…

GENEVA The World Health Organization declared Wednesday that the global coronavirus crisis is now a pandemic as U.S. stocks plunged into bear market territory and several American cities joined European counterparts in banning large…

WASHINGTON Taking drastic action Wednesday, President Donald Trump announced he is cutting off travel from Europe to the U.S. and moving to ease the economic cost of a viral pandemic that is roiling global financial markets and disrupting…

The crowd lining up recently on a cold, dark Hong Kong street wasn’t part of the anti-government protest movement that rocked the semi-autonomous Chinese territory for months. Their demand: surgical masks, now in short supply as fears grow…

HONG KONG The diagnosis of four people living in a single Hong Kong apartment block who were sickened by a new virus is prompting worried comparisons with the deadly SARS pandemic of 17 years ago. Medical workers in full protective suits…

BEIJING The outbreak of a new virus linked to a wildlife market in central China is prompting renewed calls for enforcement of laws against the trade in and consumption of exotic species. It’s also raising questions about how it could…