Six Nigerian soldiers were killed in an ambush by jihadist gunmen in the restive northeast, military sources told AFP.
The assailants opened fire on an army convoy on Sunday near the village of Mayanti, near the border with Cameroon, in an area plagued by attacks by insurgents.
"We have lost six soldiers in an ambush by Boko Haram terrorists," one officer told AFP.
A second source, giving the same toll, said the military convoy had been on its way to the nearby town of Banki when they were targeted by heavy gunfire and rocket-propelled grenades.
The decade-long jihadist uprising has killed 36,000 people and displaced around two million from their homes in northeast Nigeria.
The United Nations has complained of a surge in violence in the conflict zone in recent weeks.
Anger has been growing among local residents about the army's failure to stem the attacks.
The military has repeatedly claimed that the insurgency has largely been defeated but attacks against civilians and soldiers ...

Jihadists kill six soldiers in Nigeria's restive north: security sources

PTI Automatic

Lebanon has urged people to stay at home for two weeks and prepared to close its main airport to stem a novel coronavirus outbreak that has killed three people in the country.
The COVID-19 virus has officially infected 99 people in the Mediterranean nation.
Information Minister Manal Abdel Samad on Sunday ordered "citizens to remain at home and not go out except out of extreme necessity" until March 29.
The Beirut international airport will close from Wednesday until then, while no one will be allowed in through maritime or land ports of entry during that period, she said.
Diplomats, UN peacekeepers, employees of international organisations and goods shipments would still be permitted entry, she cited a cabinet decision as saying.
Most institutions and businesses would remain closed. Security forces, health institutions, utilities companies and shops selling food will be exempted.
Lebanon's novel coronavirus outbreak is the latest crisis to hit a country reeling from a severe economic 

Lebanon announces two-week lockdown over coronavirus

The new coronavirus has spread across Canada with a total of 313 cases confirmed Sunday in its 10 provinces, the chief public health officer told a news conference.
Atlantic coast provinces were the last to be hit. Major metropolitan centres -- Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver -- remain the most affected.
"I'm asking everyone to take strong action to prevent the spread of the virus," chief public health officer Theresa Tam said, warning that a window of opportunity to mitigate its spread was "quickly narrowing".
Measures must include, she said, limiting travel and self-isolating for 14 days upon returning from a trip abroad, as well as avoiding large crowds, practising "social distancing" and working from home, if possible, over the coming weeks.
Canada has tested nearly 25,000 people -- among the highest per capita rate in the world. The number of positive test results jumped from a few dozen just last week, including one death.
"Most of the cases (in Canada) have been linked to ...

Coronavirus spreads to all Canadian provinces

Portugal will close its border with Spain to tourists for at least a month to curb the spread of coronavirus, Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa has said.
Goods and people travelling for work will still be allowed to cross the border but not those on leisure trips, he told a news conference on Sunday after speaking by videoconference with his Spanish counterpart Pedro Sanchez.
"There will be no tourism between Portugal and Spain in the coming months," he said.
The travel restrictions will apply to both land and air borders and they will come into force once the interior ministers of both nations iron out the details on Monday, Costa said.
They will last until at least Easter, which this year falls on April 12.
"There is a good tradition of Spaniards visiting us during the Easter holidays. This year is not ideal for that visit," Costa said.
"As a result, and without any hostility I think it is necessary that during this period there is no tourism activity between Spaniards and ...

Portugal to close border with Spain to tourists

Serbia's president has declared a state of emergency to halt the spread of the coronavirus, shutting down many public spaces and deploying soldiers to guard hospitals.
"From tomorrow, there is no more school, no nurseries, no universities, everything closes, no training, sports... We will close down to save our lives, to save our parents, to save our elderly," President Aleksandar Vucic said on Sunday.

Serbia declares state of emergency over coronavirus: President

Cannabis smokers aiming to keep calm and carry on despite coronavirus queued up outside Dutch "coffee shops" after the government ordered their closure to beat the outbreak.
Customers lined up in their dozens on Sunday as they tried to beat a deadline for the closure of the marijuana cafes and stockpile weed supplies for what could be weeks of lockdown.
The Netherlands' famed coffee shops have become as much a part of the country's popular image abroad as sex clubs in Amsterdam's famed red light district, which were also ordered to shut by 6:00 pm along with all bars and restaurants.
"For maybe for the next two months we're not able to get some weed so it should be nice to at least have some in the house," Jonathan, a Dutch buyer, said outside The Point coffee shop in The Hague.
"My friend called me like five minutes ago, he saw the press conference -- good friend," he told AFP.
The queues built up minutes after the Dutch health and education ministers gave a televised press ...

Dutch queue for cannabis as coronavirus closes cafes

Ghana has said it was banning arrivals from coronavirus hotspots as the West African nation saw its number of confirmed cases triple to six.
The information ministry on Sunday said entry would be barred from Tuesday for any non-Ghanaian citizen or resident "who, within the last 14 days, has been to a country that has recorded at least 200 cases".
"There will be a mandatory 14-day self quarantine for persons who are otherwise allowed to enter," the ministry said.
The move came as the authorities reported a rise in the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 from two to six, with the new cases all arrivals from abroad.
A string of African nations have begun imposing entry restrictions as the continent scrambles to halt the spread of the virus.

Ghana to ban arrivals from coronavirus hotspots

Algeria is to suspend all air and sea links with France from Tuesday to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus, the prime minister's office said.
Abdelaziz Djerad ordered the "exceptional suspension" of "all air and sea passenger services" after consultation with his French counterpart Edouard Philippe, his office said in a statement on Sunday.
There will however be a repatriation scheme for French citizens currently travelling in Algeria and Algerian nationals now travelling in France, it added.
France is one of the European countries hit hardest by the COVID-19 illness, accounting for 91 of more than 6,000 deaths worldwide.
Algeria has reported 49 confirmed cases including one person who has since left its territory. Four have died.

Algeria to suspend air and sea links with France over virus

Multinational sporting goods seller Nike will close its stores in the US, Canada, Western Europe, Australia and New Zealand for 11 days starting Monday in response to the coronavirus pandemic, it said in a statement.
Nike stores in South Korea, Japan and much of China will remain open, however, the statement said.
It added that its online sales would continue as usual.
On Friday, the company had encouraged its US-based employees to work from home if possible. Nike has roughly 25,000 employees in the United States and more than 70,000 worldwide.

Coronavirus: Nike closes stores in US and some other countries

Hard-core supporters of President Jair Bolsonaro ignored coronavirus warnings Sunday to rally in Brazil's biggest cities, accusing Congress and the courts of hindering the far-right leader -- with some openly calling for a coup.
Hundreds of supporters gathered in Brasilia, Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, many wearing face-masks printed with messages such as "The virus are the scums in Congress."
Critics condemned the rallies as anti-democratic, in a country still haunted by memories of its military dictatorship (1964-1985) -- whose legacy Bolsonaro, a former army captain, openly admires.  But neither that nor warnings
from the authorities to avoid large gatherings amid the coronavirus pandemic stopped Bolsonaro's most fervent backers from taking to the streets.
"This is a protest against Congress, because they don't let Bolsonaro govern. They veto everything," said demonstrator Rogerio Galhardo, 60, a businessman carrying a Brazilian flag.
"All they want to do is steal," added his wife, 

Bolsonaro supporters rally despite coronavirus

French voters cast their ballots Sunday in municipal elections that appear headed for the lowest turnout in decades, after the mounting coronavirus toll saw the government close bars, restaurants and schools and limit long-distance travel.
Anti-infection precautions were in place at the country's 35,000-odd voting stations, with bottles of hand sanitiser at entrances and floors marked with tape to ensure people stay one metre (3.3 feet) from one another.
Several voters turned out sporting surgical masks or disposable gloves and clutching their own pens or bottles of gel.
The streets of Paris -- the main battleground for President Emmanuel Macron's LREM party against Socialist Mayor Anne Hidalgo and right-wing heavyweight Rachida Dati -- were eerily empty, its usually bustling restaurants and cafe terraces shuttered under emergency measures announced hours before polls opened.
France is one of the European countries hit hardest by the virus, with some 4,500 out of 150,000 confirmed ...

Hand gel at the ballot box as France votes amid virus clampdown

Germany will close its borders with France, Austria and Switzerland from Monday morning due to the coronavirus crisis, a government source told AFP on Sunday, confirming a report in German media.
The popular tabloid Bild had reported that the closures would take effect at 8:00 am (0700 GMT) on Monday, and claimed that goods and cross-border commuters would be exempt.
Chancellor Angela Merkel and Interior Minister Horst Seehofer met with state premiers from affected German regions on Sunday to agree the closures, the newspaper claimed.
The politicians aimed not only to slow the spread of the coronavirus, but also to curtail cross-border panic-buying, the report added.
Seehofer is set to hold a press conference on the decision later Sunday.  Paris, meanwhile, said the decision had been taken in coordination with the French government.
Yet the French interior ministry also insisted that the border would not be fully closed.
"We are going to limit border crossings to the strict minimum, ..

Germany to close borders with France, Austria, Switzerland

President Cyril Ramaphosa on Sunday said South African would close its borders from Wednesday to all foreigners from countries highly impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.
Visas will be refused to anyone who has visited a high-risk country in the last 20 days, and 35 of the country's 53 land ports will also be shut as of Monday.
"We are imposing a travel ban on foreign nationals from high-risk countries such as Italy, Iran, South Korea, Spain, Germany, the United States, the United Kingdom and China from 18 March 2020," Ramaphosa said in an address to the nation.
The president also announced the closure of schools for around three weeks from Wednesday.
Public gatherings of more than 100 people will be been banned and mass celebrations cancelled to limit contact.
"Given the scale and the speed at which the virus is spreading, it is now clear that no country is immune from the disease or will be spared its severe impact," said Ramaphosa, who declared a "national state of disaster".
To ..

S.Africa to close borders to all citizens from high-risk countries

Four Islamist extremists were sentenced to death in Bangladesh Sunday for the 2016 decapitation of a senior Hindu priest during a spate of attacks targeting religious minorities in the Muslim-majority nation.
The Islamic State group had claimed responsibility for the attack in the northern district of Panchagarh, but authorities blamed militants from Jamayetul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB).
"The court... sentenced all four to death over the murder. They are JMB members," Abdur Rafique, a court official in the capital Dhaka, told AFP.
The priest was a prominent member of Bangladesh's Hindu community, which makes up nearly 10 percent of the South Asian country's population of 168 million.
JMB was blamed for the murders of minorities, secular writers, publishers and foreigners between 2013 and 2016.
Among them was a savage attack at a Dhaka cafe in 2016 that killed 22 people, mostly foreigners.
Seven Islamist extremists were sentenced to death in November over the assault that was claimed .

Islamist militants sentenced to death for Bangladesh priest murder

Qatar will bar entry to arriving air passengers except citizens from Wednesday, the government said as it announced a USD 23 billion economic stimulus in response to the new coronavirus.
The country is the worst affected in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), with 401 confirmed cases of COVID-19 as of Sunday. It has not reported any fatalities but has closed universities, schools, gyms and cinemas as well as cancelling many public events including the MotoGP.
"We've taken a  number of decisions, including suspending inward flights to Qatar starting from Wednesday evening for two weeks," assistant foreign minister Lolwah al-Khater told media in Doha.
The measure could be extended at the end of the initial two week period, she said, and will be accompanied by a USD 23 billion economic stimulus package that will include USD 2.75 billion to shore-up the stock market.
Khater said "transit flights, cargo flights and Qatari nationals who want to come back to the country" would be exempted ...

Qatar restricts entry, announces USD 23 bn stimulus over virus

The EU on Sunday imposed restrictions on exports of masks and other protective medical equipment as it seeks to protect its own supplies for the fight against the coronavirus epidemic.
Announcing the measure in an online video, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also warned that EU countries imposing border checks were threatening supply chains and increasing the risks of shortages.
The move came as Germany became the latest EU country to partially close its borders, halting crossings from France, Austria and Switzerland as of Monday in a bid to slow the spread of COVID-19.
"We adopted today an export authorisation scheme for protective equipment. This means that such medical goods can only be exported to non-EU countries with the explicit authorisation of the EU governments," von der Leyen said.
"This is the right thing to do because we need that equipment for our healthcare systems." The restrictions apply to a range of equipment including masks, as well as ...

EU limits medical equipment exports in virus fight

The death toll from the coronavirus pandemic in Europe passed 2,000 on Sunday, an AFP tally compiled from official sources showed.
A total of 2,297 coronavirus-related deaths have now been recorded in Europe, most of them in the continent's worst-hit country Italy, which has registered 1,809.
Europe is now the continent where the virus is spreading the fastest, with nations there announcing 517 new deaths in the last 24 hours, for a total of more than 52,400 confirmed infections. Experts in several countries have warned that the number of cases is likely higher than the official number.

European coronavirus death toll passes 2,000

Britain on Sunday said its criticised plan to deal with coronavirus was designed to "protect life" in a "sustainable" manner as it prepared to unveil "wartime-style" measures to tackle the outbreak.
The government has yet to implement the kind of tough measures that continental Europe has adopted, but health minister Matt Hancock said Sunday it would announce emergency powers on Tuesday, which are expected to include a ban on mass gatherings.
"We are absolutely ready to do that," he told Sky News's Sophy Ridge.  "We'll take the right action at the right time," he said, adding that "the time is coming."
Britain's death toll from the disease rose on Sunday as health officials announced 14 more people had died, bringing the total number of fatalities to 35.
Official figures showed the country has 1,372 confirmed cases -- an increase of 232 from the day before.
Critics have accused the government of not acting quickly enough to contain the spread, but the government has said that it is ...

UK defends virus plan as 'wartime' measures loom

The number of people infected with the coronavirus in Spain increased by a third to 7,753 and more than 100 new deaths were recorded over the last 24 hours, health officials said Sunday.
The latest spike in Europe's second-most affected country after Italy comes after the Spanish government imposed a near-total nationwide lockdown, banning people from leaving home except to go to work, get medical care or buy food.
The country's death toll from the outbreak climbed to 288 on Sunday from at least 183, while the total number of cases rose to 7,753 from 5,753.  The wife of Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez is among those who have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, his office said late Saturday, just hours after he announced the lockdown.
Both Begona Gomez and her husband were well, and were at their official residence following the new measures introduced by the health authorities, said a government statement.
The measures were introduced as part of a 15-day state of emergency 

Spain coronavirus cases jump by a third, over 100 new deaths

Germany staked its claim Sunday to ongoing work into a vaccine against the coronavirus, after media reports claimed US president Donald Trump was trying to poach research from a German company.
"The German government has a strong interest in producing vaccines in Germany and Europe," a spokesperson for the economy ministry told media group Funke.
The ministry also pointed out that the government had the power to scrutinise foreign takeovers of German companies, "especially when it comes to national or European security".
According to a report in the Welt am Sonntag newspaper, Trump is trying to secure exclusive rights to a potential vaccine against the global health threat that has now killed some 6,000 people, which is being worked on by biotech firm CureVac.
The vaccine would then be "only for the United States," a source close to the German government told Die Welt, whose front page on Sunday read "Trump vs Berlin".
Yet a US official told AFP Sunday that the report was "wildly ...

Germany wards off US virus vaccine interest

NBA referee Courtney Kirkland has been cleared by doctors to depart Sacramento after coronavirus test results returned negative, ESPN reported Sunday.
Kirkland, who has officiated more than 1,200 games in 20 seasons as a league referee, has been cleared to resume all activity without restrictions, according to the report on the sports network's website, citing unnamed sources.
The news comes four days after Kirkland had been scheduled to officiate the Sacramento Kings' home game against the New Orleans Pelicans.
But the contest was postponed minutes before tipoff because Kirkland had also worked the Utah-Toronto game on Monday in Salt Lake City.
The move was made in the wake of Utah All-Star center Rudy Gobert of France testing positive for COVID-19 just before a scheduled game Wednesday.
Another Utah player, Donovan Mitchell, also tested positive for coronavirus.  Kirkland, 45, was tested on Thursday and isolated himself until receiving the results.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver put ..

AFP

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