Libya’s UN-recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) said Friday that its forces killed 20 militia members loyal to renegade Gen. Khalifa Haftar in Sirte.  The militia members were killed in an airstrike, Mustafa al-Mujie, the spokesman for the GNA-led Burkan Al-Ghadab (Volcano of...

Reporters Without Borders has accused Algeria's government of taking advantage of the coronavirus epidemic to "settle scores" with independent journalists, including those covering long-running anti-government protests. In a statement co-signed with Algerian NGOs, the watchdog called...

The U.N. General Assembly approved Thursday a resolution calling for "international cooperation" and "multilateralism" in the fight against COVID-19, in the first text to come out of the international body since the outbreak began. The resolution, approved by consensus, also stresses "the...

Israeli police arrested the Palestinian minister for Jerusalem affairs early Friday for allegedly violating an Israeli ban on Palestinian political activities in east Jerusalem. Fadi al-Hidmi was arrested at his home near the Mount of Olives. His office circulated surveillance camera...

Europe's stock markets slid in early deals Friday as global novel coronavirus infections topped one million and the death toll surpassed 50,000. In initial deals, London's benchmark FTSE 100 index of major blue-chip firms erased 1.3 percent to 5,410.95 points compared with Thursday's close....

Syrian authorities on Thursday sealed a major Shi'ite shrine that is a magnet for tens of thousands of Iranian pilgrims whom medics and the U.N. officials warned their congregation puts the country at risk of a major spread of coronavirus. The move comes as the war-ravaged country steps up...

(Zaman Al Wasl)- Syrian regime on Thursday said its confirmed Coronavirus cases rose to 16 from an earlier 10 cases as medics say there are many more.  The United Nations says the country is at high risk of a major outbreak because of a fragile health system devastated by a...

The number of cumulative known deaths from coronavirus in France surged to nearly 5,400 on Thursday as the country started including fatalities in nursing homes in its data. Jerome Salomon, head of the public health authority, said the number of coronavirus-related deaths in hospitals rose...

 At a tense cabinet meeting on Saturday in the Brazilian president’s official residence, Jair Bolsonaro found himself isolated. The far-right leader convened the emergency meeting in Brasilia’s modernist Alvarado Palace to resolve a dispute with Health Minister Luiz Henrique Mandetta,...

Twitter took down thousands of accounts linked to Egypt, Honduras, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia and Serbia on Thursday for either taking directions from the governments or promoting pro-government content. Twitter and other social media companies are under pressure to clean up misinformation and...

Istanbul's opposition mayor on Thursday called for a lockdown in Turkey's largest city after it reported the country's highest number of coronavirus cases and criticised the lack of coordination with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Turkey's government has announced measures to contain the...

Australia's science agency announced on Thursday it has begun trials on ferrets to produce a vaccine against the novel coronavirus.  A statement released by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) -- the country's national science agency -- said that...

Iraq has thousands of confirmed COVID-19 cases, many times more than the 772 it is has publicly reported, according to three doctors closely involved in the testing process, a health ministry official and a senior political official. The sources all spoke on condition of anonymity. Iraqi...

Oil prices rocketed Thursday after US President Donald Trump said Russia and Saudi Arabia planned to end their price war by slashing output. But gains for Brent North Sea crude of nearly 46 percent cooled to around 20 percent as Russia denied it had spoken with Saudi Arabia, the world's...

The U.S. Democratic Party on Thursday postponed its presidential nominating convention by a month until August, citing the coronavirus health crisis which has upended life in the country. The delay is the latest sign the coronavirus pandemic is having a profound impact on the presidential...

 Iran’s parliament speaker has contracted the coronavirus, the country's highest-ranking government figure yet to catch the disease, while in Israel, several top officials entered quarantine when the health minister tested positive on Thursday. Iran's parliament announced Ali...

Jordan imposed a 24-hour nationwide curfew on Thursday, starting from midnight, to help stem the coronavirus outbreak, the state news agency reported. Medical staff will be exempt. Jordan had registered 278 coronavirus cases and five deaths as of April 1.

A total of 145 civilians were killed in attacks in Syria last month, the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) said Wednesday.   The group said 5 children and 3 women were among the victims that included 36 who were killed by regime forces and allied militias, 14 tortured to...

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Thursday Britain would "massively increase testing" for the COVID-19 virus as the country recorded more than 500 daily deaths for a second consecutive day. Johnson made the vow amid a growing wave of criticism of his government's failure to provide...

Malka Abu Aker has seen her crowded refugee camp in the Israeli-occupied West Bank swell year upon year since fleeing there over 70 years ago, with the arrival of new generations and those escaping successive Mideast conflicts. But with the coronavirus spreading locally, the 73-year-old...