Yankees' minor league player tests positive for coronavirus

NEW YORK (AFP) -- A New York Yankees minor league player has tested positive for the coronavirus the team said Sunday, the first known case in baseball. The team did not identify the player in accordance with US medical privacy regulations, but said he was never present at the Florida spring training facility used by the Yankees' major league team and did not have known contact with any of the Yankees players. "He was never here, nor anybody who would be linked to being with him," Y

World NewsMarch 16, 2020

Fed takes emergency steps to slash rates and ease bank rules

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Federal Reserve took massive emergency action Sunday to help the economy withstand the coronavirus by slashing its benchmark interest rate to near zero and saying it would buy $700 billion in Treasury and mortgage bonds. The Fed's surprise announcement signaled its worry that the viral outbreak will depress economic growth in coming months and that it is prepared to do whatever it can counter the risks. It cut its key rate by a full percentage point -- to a range be

World NewsMarch 16, 2020

Global economic coordination lacking in virus crisis

With the global economy melting down after the failure of Lehman Brothers in 2008, world leaders swiftly created an international forum that committed to boost economies by spending more and keeping trade open. Central banks announced rate cuts within seconds of each other. The approach to the economic shock from the coronavirus outbreak is, so far, looking very different. The disease for most people causes only mild or moderate symptoms. For some, it can cause more severe illness. With the w

World BusinessMarch 15, 2020

Philippines isolates Manila to fight coronavirus outbreak

Thousands of police officers and army troops started sealing the Philippines' densely populated capital on Sunday at the start of one of Southeast Asia's most drastic containment moves against the new coronavirus.    Under monthlong restrictions imposed in the entire Manila metropolis _ home to more than 12 million people _ residents are compelled to stay at home, except when they need to leave for work or go on urgent errands, including medical emergencies.    Police and s

World NewsMarch 15, 2020

Tokyo 2020 torch handover to take place in empty Athens stadium

The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games flame handover in Athens next week will be done in an empty stadium amid the coronavirus outbreak, Greece's Olympic Committee said on Sunday. Greece on Friday cancelled the remainder of the domestic Olympic torch relay through the country to avoid attracting crowds a day after the Tokyo Games flame was lit in ancient Olympia. The Hellenic Olympic Committee has decided that the handover ceremony for the "Tokyo 2020" Olympic Games, on Thursday, March 19, w

World NewsMarch 15, 2020

Turkey quarantines thousands of pilgrims returning from Saudi Arabia

Thousands of Muslims returning to Turkey from a pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia were being taken into quarantine on Sunday due to concerns about the spread of the coronavirus, Turkish officials said. Television pictures showed buses transporting pilgrims along the highway from Ankara's airport to the city as part of an operation to place those returning into student dormitories. Turkey, which has only diagnozed six cases of coronavirus, has ramped up measures to halt its spread in recent days, clos

World NewsMarch 15, 2020

Irish PM mulls coronavirus restrictions on pubs after outcry

The Irish government isconsidering imposing restrictions on pubs and nightclubs due tocoronavirus, after videos of singing in packed bars in thecapital on Saturday sparked a social media campaign to closethem down. Ireland, which has 129 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and two deaths, closed schools and universities last week and advisedpeople to cancel all indoor gatherings of 100 people or more. But it stopped short of closing cafes, bars and restaurants, as some European states have done, citin

World NewsMarch 15, 2020

US extends travel ban to UK and Ireland, reviews domestic curbs

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- The United States said Saturday it was stepping up its fight against the coronavirus and extending a European travel ban to include the United Kingdom and Ireland, while acknowledging that some domestic travel curbs were also being considered. President Donald Trump has decided to "suspend all travel from the United Kingdom and Ireland" effective midnight Monday EST (0400 GMT Tuesday), Vice President Mike Pence told a White House news conference. "Americans

World NewsMarch 15, 2020

Wife of Spain's prime minister tests positive for virus

MADRID (AP) -- Spain's government said Saturday that the wife of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has tested positive for the new coronavirus. It said Begona Gomez and the prime minister are in good health and following the instructions of medical authorities at their residence in La Moncloa Palace in Madrid, the government seat. Two ministers of Sanchez's Cabinet, the minister of equality and the minister of regional affairs, had already tested positive earlier this week. The government said b

World NewsMarch 15, 2020

Trump tests negative for coronavirus: White House physician

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- US President Donald Trump has tested negative for the novel coronavirus, the White House physician said Saturday. Trump submitted to the test after coming in contact with several members of a Brazilian presidential delegation visiting his Florida resort who have since tested positive for the virus. "This evening I received confirmation that the test is negative," the president's physician Sean Conley said in a memo. "One week after having dinner with the B

World NewsMarch 15, 2020

US summons Chinese ambassador over COVID-19 conspiracy theory

The United States on Friday summoned China's ambassador after a senior official in Beijing tweeted the "ridiculous" suggestion that the US military started the COVID-19 pandemic, the State Department said. David Stilwell, the top US diplomat for Asia, issued a "stern representation" to Ambassador Cui Tiankai a day after foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian tweeted the conspiracy theory. "China is seeking to deflect criticism for its role in starting a global 

World NewsMarch 14, 2020

Greek organisers scrap Olympic torch relay because of crowds

ATHENS (AFP) -- Greece's Olympic Committee on Friday said it was cancelling the rest of the torch relay for the Tokyo 2020 Games on Greek soil as large crowds had turned out despite coronavirus warnings. "The rest of the torch relay on Greek soil has been cancelled," the committee said, adding that the Olympic flame would be handed over to Tokyo organisers on March 19 as scheduled, but without spectators. It noted that crowds had ignored "repeated warnings" not to gat

World NewsMarch 13, 2020

Canada: Trudeau's wife tests positive for new coronavirus

TORONTO (AP) – Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's wife has tested positive for the new coronavirus, his office announced Thursday night. It said Sophie Grégoire Trudeau was felling well and would remain in isolation. "The Prime Minister is in good health with no symptoms. As a precautionary measure and following the advice of doctors, he will be in isolation for a planned period of 14 days," the statement added. His office said the doctor's advice to the prime mi

World NewsMarch 13, 2020

Iran reports 85 new virus deaths, taking total to 514

TEHRAN (AFP) --Iran announced on Friday that the new coronavirus has claimed another 85 lives, the highest single-day death toll in one of the world's worst affected countries. "Sadly, 85 people infected with the COVID-19 disease have died in the past 24 hours", bringing to 514 the overall number of deaths in Iran, health ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour said in a televised news conference. "Across the country, at least 1,289 infected people have been added to the list of

World NewsMarch 13, 2020

UEFA postpone all Champions League and Europa League matches next week

PARIS (AFP) -- All UEFA Champions League and Europa League matches scheduled to be played next week have been postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic, European football's governing body said on Friday. The move comes after two of next week's four scheduled Champions League last 16, second legs -- between Manchester City and Real Madrid, and between Juventus and Lyon -- had already been called off on Thursday. That followed Real's announcement that their squad had been placed in quaranti

World NewsMarch 13, 2020

Kenya confirms first case of coronavirus in East Africa

NAIROBI (AFP) -- Kenya announced Friday the first confirmed case of coronavirus in East Africa, as the region so far unscathed by the global pandemic scaled up emergency measures to contain its spread. A 27-year-old Kenyan woman tested positive for the virus on March 12 in Nairobi, a week after returning from the United States via London. She was in a stable condition and recovering, Health Minister Mutahi Kagwe told reporters. "We wish to assure all Kenyans that the government will use

World NewsMarch 13, 2020

Pandemic shuts down Everest as Nepal suspends permits

KATHMANDU (AFP) -- Nepal on Friday barred climbers from all mountains — including Everest — over the coronavirus pandemic, in a major blow to its tourism industry. The Himalayan country, which has so far confirmed one coronavirus case, earns 4.4 million dollars a year from climbing permits while the losses to expedition organisers will be even higher. As well as suspending all climbing permits, Nepal stopped issuing tourist visas on arrival, Yogesh Bhattarai, Minister for Culture

World NewsMarch 13, 2020

China, US spar over origin of coronavirus

BEIJING (AFP) -- A Chinese government campaign to cast doubt on the origin of the coronavirus pandemic is fuelling a row with the United States, with a Beijing official promoting conspiracy theories and Washington calling it the "Wuhan virus". The spat comes as China tries to deflect blame for the contagion and reframe itself as a country that took decisive steps to buy the world time by placing huge swathes of its population under quarantine. With cases falling in China and soaring

World NewsMarch 13, 2020

Chelsea's Hudson-Odoi becomes first Premier League player with virus

LONDON (AFP) -- Chelsea's players and coaching staff were ordered into isolation as Callum Hudson-Odoi became the first Premier League player confirmed to have the new coronavirus late on Thursday. "Chelsea men's team player Callum Hudson-Odoi had a positive test result for coronavirus returned this evening," a club statement said. "Chelsea personnel who had recent close contact with the player in the men's team building will now self-isolate in line with government health guid

World NewsMarch 13, 2020

Canada PM's wife tests positive for new coronavirus

OTTAWA (AFP) -- The wife of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has tested positive for the new coronavirus, his office said late Thursday. "Sophie Gregoire-Trudeau was tested for COVID-19 today. The test came back positive," the Prime Minister's office said in a statement. "Following medical advice, she will remain in isolation for the time being. She is feeling well, is taking all the recommended precautions and her symptoms remain mild," it said. "The Prime M

World NewsMarch 13, 2020