WHO chief warns world leaders not to 'politicize' coronavirus pandemic

“The greatest threat we face now is not the virus itself, it’s the lack of global solidarity and global leadership,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said. “We cannot defeat this pandemic with a divided world.”

Johnson & Johnson pulls skin-whitening products sold in Asia, Middle East

Johnson & Johnson is pulling two product lines once promoted as dark-spot reducers that were popularly used to lighten skin, the company has announced.

Indonesia's most volatile volcano spews ash in new eruption

Mount Merapi’s clouds of ash, accompanied by a rumbling sound heard miles away, blanketed several villages on the main island of Java.

Long-dreaded virus increase hits Iraq as new COVID-19 cases soar

In Baghdad’s vast exhibition grounds, masked workers are setting up makeshift coronavirus wards amid a surge in new virus cases.

Diego the tortoise, famous for saving species with his high sex drive, starts retirement

Diego, the famed Galapagos tortoise whose high sex drive is credited with saving his species from extinction, has entered retirement after decades of breeding and fathering hundreds of tortoises.

Computer simulation from Japanese university shows how easily COVID-19 can spread in an office

Japan’s public broadcasting organization NHK released a video from RIKEN, Japan’s largest scientific research institute, which utilized a supercomputer’s predictive algorithm to demonstrate particulate patterns associated with airborne illnesses like the coronavirus. 

US, China to each allow 4 weekly flights for airlines

The U.S. Department of Transportation announced on Monday that U.S. carriers have been approved to fly four weekly flights to China.

Black Lives Matter banner removed at US Embassy in Seoul

A large Black Lives Matter banner has been removed from the U.S. Embassy building in South Korea three days after it was raised there in solidarity with protesters back home.

China, Korea, Egypt report rise in COVID-19 cases as curbs ease

China reported its highest daily total of new coronavirus cases in two months on Sunday and infections in South Korea also rose, showing how the disease can come back as curbs on business and travel are lifted.  

Scottish Parliament votes in favor of immediate suspension of tear gas, rubber bullet exports to US

In response to police brutality and racial injustice that has ignited protests around the world since the death of George Floyd during an encounter with Minneapolis police, the Scottish Parliament voted in favor of the immediate suspension of exports of riot gear from the U.K. to the U.S.