North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has presided over a politburo meeting of the Workers' Party and discussed measures to develop the chemical industry, but inter-Korean issues and other external matters were not on the agenda, state media reported on Monday. ....

Brazil has removed months of data on the COVID-19 pandemic from a government website amid criticism of President Jair Bolsonaro's handling of the outbreak which has so far infected over 645,700, the media reported on Sunday. ....

After several studies revealed the side effects of anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), new research has found that HCQ did not reduce the risk of ventilation or death in Covid-19 patients and was associated with longer length of hospital stay. ....

Tens of thousands of people staged mass Black Lives Matter protests across Australia on Saturday in support of the movement. ....

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday updated its guidance on the use of masks for control of COVID-19, advising all people aged 60 years or over, or those with underlying conditions, to wear a medical mask in situations where physical distancing is not possible. ....

Australian flag carrier Qantas and its low-cost budget airline Jetstar were resuming domestic and regional flights in June and July as travel restrictions have started to ease across the country. ....

Breaking his silence over the nationwide protests in the US against the death of African-American George Floyd, former Defence Secretary Jim Mattis said that President Donald Trump "tries to divide" the American people, instead of uniting. ....

Retaliating to the bar on US-based airlines from entering China, the Trump administration has said it will suspend all operations of all passenger flights of China-based airlines to and from the US starting June 16. ....

Coronavirus could be a seasonal illness with a higher risk in winter as researchers have found a one per cent decrease in humidity could increase the number of coronavirus cases by six per cent. ....

US President Donald Trump has vowed to deploy "thousands and thousands of heavily armed soldiers" to stop the unrest in the capital and other cities if local administrations refuse to take the action against demonstrators who were protesting over the death of African-American man, George Floyd. ....