Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs To Anh Dung has been arrested for allegedly receiving bribes when organizing repatriation flights for Vietnamese citizens abroad during the Covid-19 pandemic. Dung, 58, is being investigated for “taking bribes”, spokesman for the Ministry of Public Security To An Xo said Thursday. Dung began his …
Read More »Vietnam records 23,012 new Covid cases
Vietnam on Thursday recorded 23,012 new Covid-19 cases, bringing the infection tally in the fourth wave to 10,231,641 cases. The three localities with the highest numbers of new cases are Hanoi with 1,677 cases, Yen Bai with 945 cases and Vinh Phuc with 936 cases, all in northern Vietnam. 23 …
Read More »Vietnam builds master plan to cut air pollution
Vietnam will implement a plan to eliminate fossil-fuel vehicles, tighten emission control and add more green spaces to urban areas. Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on Wednesday approved the National Strategy for Environmental Protection to 2030 with a vision until 2050, in which the government sets targets to prevent the …
Read More »Vietnam begins Covid vaccination for children aged 5-11
160 sixth graders in the northern Quang Ninh were the first in the 5-11 age group to be vaccinated against Covid-19 in Vietnam on Thursday. The students of Tran Quoc Toan Secondary School in Ha Long were vaccinated with the Moderna vaccine donated by the Australian government. All classrooms on …
Read More »Toll in South Africa’s deadliest floods tops 300
The death toll from devastating floods in and around the South African port city of Durban has risen to 306, the government said Wednesday, after roads and hillsides were washed away as homes collapsed. The heaviest rains in 60 years pummelled Durban’s municipality, known as eThekwini, according to an AFP …
Read More »South Korea raises interest rate to tame inflation
South Korea’s central bank on Thursday raised its key interest rate to the highest level since August 2019 to tame rising inflation, especially soaring energy costs linked to the Ukraine crisis. The Bank of Korea (BOK) raised the borrowing cost to 1.5 percent — its third hike in less than …
Read More »Pre-engineered buildings to make a breakthrough in 2022: Pebsteel director
Adib Kouteili, co-founder and Director of PEB Steel Buildings Co., Ltd. (Pebsteel) believes in the prospects of pre-engineered buildings in 2022, given two driving forces of industrialization and urbanization post-Covid. With nearly 40 years of experience in the pre-engineered steel industry, Adib Kouteili is one of the pioneers who brought …
Read More »Hong Kong questions costs of Covid rules on mental health, livelihoods
To fight Covid, Hong Kong shut schools and businesses, nearly sealed its borders for two years, banned more than two people from gathering and quarantined whole buildings. Still the draconian restrictions were unable to contain the coronavirus, and with more than 8,600 deaths of mostly elderly, unvaccinated people, many just …
Read More »International agencies call for urgent aid to address food insecurity
Major international organizations issued an appeal Wednesday for urgent measures to deal with rising food insecurity in poor countries, including financing to support farmers and increase food supplies. The Russian invasion of Ukraine, and Western sanctions on Moscow, have sent energy and food prices soaring in recent weeks, while rising …
Read More »Russian warship ‘seriously damaged’ in ammunition explosion: state media
A Russian warship in the Black Sea was “seriously damaged” by an ammunition explosion, Russian state media said Thursday. “As a result of a fire, ammunition detonated on the Moskva missile cruiser. The ship was seriously damaged,” the Russian defense ministry was quoted as saying, adding that the cause of …
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