Issues

Asteroid to make “close approach” with Earth today

A handout Doppler radar image made available by the Arecibo Observatory shows asteroid (52768) 1998 OR 2, which is approximately 2 km in diameter, approaching earth's orbit, 18 April 2020…

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European doctors warn rare childrens’ syndrome may be linked to coronavirus

Doctors in Britain, Italy, and Spain have been warned to look out for a rare inflammatory condition in children that is possibly linked to the new coronavirus. Earlier this week,…

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Record 50 million people displaced inside own countries by violence and disasters

The number of internally displaced people (IDPs) around the world has reached an all-time high, according to a new report from the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC), part of the…

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Hubble Telescope marks 30th anniversary with stunning new image

The Hubble Space Telescope has celebrated its 30th birthday by issuing an extraordinary new picture from a distant galaxy. The stunning image is of a vast star-forming region close to…

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eCabs supports MOAS and the Agency for the Welfare of Asylum Seekers

A total of 2500 meters of elastic, 500 meters of fabric and 140 spools of thread are being delivered by eCabs to 130 volunteers around Malta. These volunteers have recently…

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UNICEF and Microsoft launch global learning platform to help address COVID-19 education crisis

UNICEF and Microsoft Corp. announced the expansion of a global learning platform to help children and youth affected by COVID-19 continue their education at home. The Learning Passport started off…

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Photo Story: Lyrid meteor shower over Spain

A meteor crosses the sky over the town of Ajuy during Lyrid meteor shower in Fuerteventura island, Canary Islands, Spain, early 22 April 2020. The source of the meteors is…

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US green cards temporary suspended

President Donald Trump has said his plan to ban immigration into the US will last for 60 days and apply only to those seeking permanent residence. More than 20 million…

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US coronavirus study warns sick children could overwhelm health system

Paediatric services in the US could be overwhelmed by thousands of sick infants and young children – an overlooked group which has a higher risk of serious illness from Covid-19,…

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Photo Story: Starlink satellites above Hungary

A computer-generated image from several long-exposure images shows Starlink satellites (centre) in the sky above the concrete base of a former heating plant in Salgotarjan, Hungary, 20 April 2020. The…

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Migrants from Spanish vessel ‘Aita Mari’ transferred to Italian ferry off Palermo

A handout photo made available by the Salvamento Maritimo Humanitario (SMH, Humanitarian Sea Rescue) non-governmental organization (NGO) shows some of the 34 migrants, who were rescued at sea, prior to…

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MSF and SOS Mediterranee split up amid disagreement over the rescue of migrants

Aid group Doctors without Borders (MSF) said it is ending its cooperation with partner SOS Mediterranee amid disagreement over the continued rescue of migrants. Doctors without Borders said it wants…

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European Web Survey on Drugs launched to assess impact of pandemic

A new survey, available in most European languages including Maltese, will gather information on how patterns of drug use, access to health services and the drug market may have changed…

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From isolation to isolation, ISS return to Earth

A crew of three has returned from the International Space Station (ISS) to a very different planet they left last year. Their Soyuz landing capsule landed under a striped orange-and-white…

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U.N. warns economic downturn could kill hundreds of thousands of children in 2020

Hundreds of thousands of children could die this year due to the global economic downturn sparked by the coronavirus pandemic and tens of millions more could fall into extreme poverty…

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UN agencies welcome first relocation of unaccompanied children from Greece

IOM, the International Organization for Migration, UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and UNICEF, the UN Children’s Fund today welcomed the relocation of 12 unaccompanied asylum-seeking children from Greece to Luxembourg. The…

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Another migrant tragedy off the Maltese coast

At least five migrants died and seven were missing when the coast guard returned 49 others to Libya's capital Tripoli on Wednesday as fighting there raged, the U.N. migration agency…

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Greeks fear migrant arrivals from Turkey

Over the weekend various Greek media outlets have reported that a high number of migrants are being allowed to gather on the western coasts of Turkey in preparation to sail…

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Germany foils ISIS terrorist attack

German authorities say police have arrested four suspected members of the Islamic State group alleged to be planning an attack on American military facilities. Federal prosecutors said the suspects…

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No boat capsized as FRONTEX accounts for all boats in the Med

Frontex, told AFP on Monday it said "all four boats have been accounted for" and there had been no shipwreck in the Mediterranean. "Two arrived in Sicily and two remain…

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Claim of shipwreck of boat carrying persons in migratory journey and its location confirmed to be unfounded – Malta’s Foreign Affairs Minister

Allegations that a boat carrying dozens of migrants had sunk in Malta’s Search and Rescue Area were confirmed to be unfounded. Malta's foreign affairs minister Evarist Bartolo made this declaration…

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Italy orders migrants from Alan Kurdi transferred onto quarantine ship

Italy has ordered 156 migrants on board a German rescue ship off the western coast of Sicily to be transferred to another vessel and quarantined. The migrants, mostly from…

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Turkey allegedly has a plan to push migrants infected with the coronavirus to cross into Greece and other parts of Europe

Greek authorities were reported to have found out that numerous migrants in Turkey have been concentrating in the country's western seaside towns, as if ready to cross into neighboring Greece's…

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Persons on the migratory route between Malta and Libya believed to have died after barge capsizes

A number of persons are believed to have died following the wreck of a barge between Malta and Tripoli. Sea Watch in a tweet, said that "250 people were drifting…

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UN calls on European countries not to return asylum seekers to Libya

The United Nations has called on the European countries to end the suffering of asylum seekers rescued in the Mediterranean, and not to return them to Libya. The Libyan Observer…

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Europe’s hot summer weather could worsen the effects of COVID-19

Unseasonably warm temperatures across most of Europe is currently enjoying could aggravate the situation for the agricultural sector as crops will suffer greatly. And experts say there is a very…

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Photo Story: Initiative in the UK to fight children’s boredom

Sock puppets displayed on a blue fence in Leicestershire, Britain. The Landlord of the Stoney Stanton village pub has encouraged children to make sock puppets, which he later displays on…

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Space station crew blast off for isolation in space

A three-man crew blasted off to the International Space Station on Thursday, leaving behind a planet overwhelmed by the coronavirus pandemic. Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner of Russia's Roscosmos space…

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UN issues children’s story book to help children cope with COVID-19

A new story book that aims to help children understand and come to terms with COVID-19 has been produced by a collaboration of more than 50 organizations working in the…

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Photo Story: Largest, brightest supermoon of 2020

In the photo above a full moon rises above the Salgo Castle pictured from Somoskoujfalu, Hungary. This full moon is known as the Pink supermoon because it is the first…

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UN chief urges end to domestic violence, citing global surge

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Sunday night that there has been “a horrifying global surge in domestic violence” as fear of the coronavirus has grown along with its social…

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Cyber criminals threaten to hold hospitals to ransom – Interpol

As hospitals around the world struggle to handle the influx of COVID-19 patients, cyber criminals are threatening to exploit the crisis and hold them to ransom, according to an Interpol…

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COVID-19 affecting weather alert accuracy

UN weather experts warned that the coronavirus pandemic risks disrupting key forecasting services, including early warning alerts around the world. Both the quantity and quality of weather observations and forecasts,…

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Worldwide teddy bear hunt helps distract children under lockdown

A mass teddy bear hunt is under way around the world to help distract the millions of children locked down because of the coronavirus pandemic. Stuffed toys are being placed…

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UK police warn of paedophiles preying on children online during lockdown

British police said on Friday there were at least 300,000 people in the country who posed a sex threat to children, warning that there could be a spike in online…

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Top EU court says eastern states broke law by refusing to host refugees

The European Union’s top court ruled on Thursday that Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic had broken the law by refusing to host refugees to help ease the burden…

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Row erupts in Italy over taking children outside during lockdown

A row has erupted in Italy over parents being allowed to take their children out for a short walk amid the coronavirus lockdown. The government said in a circular letter…

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Greece quarantines camp after migrants test coronavirus positive

Greece has quarantined a migrant camp after 20 asylum seekers tested positive for coronavirus, the migration ministry said on Thursday, its first such facility to be hit since the…

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EU launches naval mission to police Libya arms embargo

EU ambassadors agreed to deploy a new naval mission in the Central Mediterranean to police the U.N. arms embargo on Libya. The new Irini mission (the Greek word for "peace"),…

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Minecraft launches free educational content for children

Minecraft has released a series of free educational sessions that parents can download to help children learn at home. Minecraft Marketplace, which features items and add-ons that people can use…

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Dozens of migrants die in shipping container in Mozambique

The bodies of 64 men were discovered asphyxiated in a sealed shipping container on the back of a truck at a checkpoint in Tete, Mozambique on Tuesday. Fourteen others rescued…

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Coronavirus: NGOs are stopping their rescue missions on the sea

“The pandemic is forcing us to freeze our activities. This is a necessary decision, despite the fact that the embarkments have started again,” said a spokesperson from Mediterranea. Ocean Viking,…

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Societies that stand together are more resilient in times of crisis, say human rights heads on International Anti-Racism Day

While ever more countries introduce measures to counter the current health risks, it is important to remember that societies based on solidarity and inclusion are more resilient to fast-changing circumstances,…

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