Europe
Ukrainian president tests positive for coronavirus
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Monday he tested positive for the novel coronavirus but felt fine as infections surged in the country. “Despite all quarantine measures, I also had a positive test,” Zelensky said on Facebook. The 42-year-old leader said that his temperature was 37.5C but that he felt “good”. He will self-isolate and continue to perform his duties, he added. “Most people overcome Covid-19. And I will get through this too,” he said. The head of Zelensky’s office Andriy Yermak also said that he had contracted the coronavirus. In June, Zelensky’s wife Olena Zelenska was hospitalized after contracting the virus but has recovered. On Saturday, the ex-Soviet country of 40 million people reported a record of 10,746 new coronavirus infections. Ukraine, one of Europe’s po...
Nigeria records 180 new virus infections
Nigeria recorded 180 COVID-19 cases on Thursday, taking the total number of infections in the nation to 63,508. Meanwhile, no death was recorded from the disease in the last 24 hours, meaning that the fatality stays at 1, 155. This is according to the latest statistics provided by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, NCDC, on Thursday night. Of the 63,508 cases, 59,748 have been discharged across the country and the Federal Capital Territory. A total of 673,183 tests have been carried out across Nigeria. The 180 new cases were reported from 14 states. Thy are: Lagos (87), Oyo (51), FCT (12), Plateau (10), Edo (4), Ekiti (3), Ogun (3), Bauchi (2), Kaduna (2), Niger (2), Kano (1), Ondo (1), Osun (1), Rivers (1) With the latest figures, Lagos still leads in the number of confirmed cases wi...
Europa: Arsenal overcome scare to beat Molde
Arsenal overcame an early scare to continue their perfect start in the Europa League with a 4-1 victory over Norwegian side Molde at the Emirates Stadium. Martin Ellingsen’s long-range effort gave the visitors a shock lead in the 22nd minute, but Arsenal, after a rather disjointed first-half performance, were back on level terms just before the break thanks to Kristoffer Haugen’s own goal (+1). The turnaround was complete in the 62nd minute as substitute Sheriff Sinyan also turned into his own net, before Nicolas Pepe (69) and Joe Willock (88) added the gloss to the scoreline for Mikel Arteta’s side. It’s three wins from three in Europe now for the Gunners, who move three points clear of Molde at the top of Group B as they race towards qualification for the knockout rounds. After a slow st...
Swedish premier self-isolates as nation reports virus surge
Sweden’s prime minister announced Thursday he has gone into protective self-isolation after a person close to him encountered someone who tested positive for the coronavirus. The country is experiencing an autumn surge of infections. From his Facebook account, Prime Minister Stefan Lofven said that on his doctor’s advice, he and his wife, Ulla, were self-isolating, even though they have no symptoms. He said it was “the only responsible thing to do in this situation.” Lofven’s announcement came as Sweden’s Public Health Agency reported a record 4,034 new daily infections and five new deaths, putting Sweden’s total deaths at 6,002. In his post, Lofven said the new infections were clearly going in the wrong direction. Early in the pandemic, as other Nordic nations locked down to fight the vir...
Cristiano Ronaldo to make Portugal return against France, Croatia
Cristiano Ronaldo was on Thursday named in the Portugal squad to play a friendly against Andorra and Nations League matches against France and Croatia. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner tested positive for coronavirus on October 13 when with the Portugal squad, going on to miss the 3-0 victory over Sweden. The 35-year-old finally tested negative 19 days later, returning to the pitch with a double for Juventus against Spezia in Serie A action on Sunday. The Portugal captain also played in Juve’s 4-1 victory over Ferencvaros in the Champions League on Wednesday. Reigning European champions Portugal take on Andorra on Wednesday before Nations League A3 matches at home against France on November 14 and away to Croatia three days later. The main absentee from Fernando Santos’ 25-man squad is Pep...
British parliament approves second national lockdown
The British Parliament has approved a four-week coronavirus lockdown plan to begin Thursday morning. Lawmakers approved the plan Wednesday, 516-38. Beginning 1 a.m. Thursday, all nonessential businesses including pubs, restaurants, hairdressers, golf courses, gyms, swimming pools, entertainment and sporting venues will close until at least December 2. The vote on Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s lockdown plan was never really in doubt after the opposition Labor Party said it would support the move, even though it criticized Johnson for acting too slowly. Some in Johnson’s own party, however, voted against the plan, saying a national lockdown was too severe. The plan is an effort prevent COVID-19 from escalating out of control and overwhelming Britain’s National Health Service. It represents ...
BBC exposes European pyramid scam exploiting Africans, others
A new investigation by BBC Africa Eye has uncovered a global pyramid scam, run from Europe, that is using smartphones to cheat ordinary people across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Crowd1 describes itself as “the fastest growing crowd marketing company in the world” and produces social media videos which show members buying new cars and enjoying luxury holidays. Using nothing but a smartphone, Crowd1 claims, you can become a millionaire by promoting and selling a series of exciting digital products to your network. These claims have persuaded thousands of people across Africa to hand over the 99 Euros that buys an entry-level membership to Crowd1. But a six-month investigation by BBC Africa Eye reveals that, behind the slick marketing, Crowd1 is peddling a range of bogus products and fal...
Zlatan Ibrahimovic overhead kick seals AC Milan win at Udinese
Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored an acrobatic late winner as AC Milan consolidated top spot in Serie A with a 2-1 win over Udinese on Udinese. The 39-year-old has scored seven goals in four league games played having missed the other two after contracting coronavirus. Stefano Pioli’s side are top of the table with 16 points from six games, four points ahead of Atalanta. Champions Juventus are sixth — seven points behind AC Milan — before Sunday’s game against promoted Spezia where Cristiano Ronaldo starts on the bench after testing negative for Covid-19. Magic from Zlatan Ibrahimović! 🙌 Just when his team needed it, he came up with an acrobatic finish which will likely seal the win for Milan 🔥 pic.twitter.com/oNPtU0KCdo — Premier Sports 📺 (@PremierSportsTV) November 1, 202...
Oil prices slide in lockdown-driven rout
Oil prices dived Thursday on demand fears as more nations go into lockdown to staunch the spread of the coronavirus, while stock prices attempted a modest rebound. Both main oil contracts fell five percent for part of the day before clawing back some of their losses, extending this week’s meltdown to plumb four-month lows on virus-driven demand fears. “The new lockdowns have since yesterday caused a carnage in the oil market,” said Bjornar Tonhaugen, head of oil markets at Rystad Energy. “Oil demand will lose ground as a result of the new lockdowns… Prices now naturally decline on this grim prospect,” he added. The drop in oil prices will increase the pain on oil companies. Exxon Mobil announced Thursday it was eliminating 1,900 US jobs as part of a cost-cutting drive necessitated in part ...
How fans pushed Al Nassr to sack Super Eagles skipper
More facts are emerging as to how Ahmed Musa suddenly became clubless. On Monday, Al Nassr confirmed that the Super Eagles captain was leaving. The 28-year-old is now a free agent after parting ways with the Saudi Pro League outfit on ‘mutual terms’. However, speaking with newsmen, Mohamed Hamdy Ahmed who writes for Merca Today in the Gulf State, gave more details on Ahmed’s departure. “There was great anger that caused this decision. The fans are sad about the player’s performance with the team. “The fans were not satisfied with the level of the player so the management took this decision,” Ahmed said. The Nigerian winger in 58 appearances scored 11 goals and got 14 assists, while helping the team win the 2018/2019 Saudi top-flight diadem and the 2019 Saudi Super Cup. But it was not enoug...
European Union backs Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala for WTO role
The European Union has endorsed former Nigerian finance minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as the next director-general of the World Trade Organisation, Bloomberg reported. The business news outlet cited anonymous officials familiar with the matter that all the 27 EU member countries agreed on Monday in Brussels to support Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala. Bloomberg also reported that the United States has decided to back Yoo Myung-hee, South Korea’s trade minister, for the role. The position has been fiercely contested amongst candidates of different countries since Roberto Azevedo resigned in August. Last month, Okonjo-Iweala and Myung-hee were selected as the last two candidates in the contest. The EU’s endorsement is seen as a significant boost for Okonjo-Iweala’s candidacy, with the final winner expected...
Italy closes theatres, gyms as virus cases mount
Italy’s Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte tightened nationwide coronavirus restrictions Sunday after the country recorded a record number of new cases, despite opposition from regional heads and street protests over curfews. Cinemas, theatres, gyms and swimming pools must all close under the new rules, which come into force on Monday and run until November 24, while restaurants and bars will stop serving at 6pm, the prime minister’s office said. Italy, the first European country to be hit hard by the pandemic and impose a nationwide lockdown, on Saturday clocked nearly 20,000 new cases in a 24-hour period. “Semi-lockdown for a month,” said the Repubblica daily, noting Conte had done little to appease regional heads who had appealed for much softer measures to save ailing businesses devastated ...
