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China's commercial capital of Shanghai was dealt a blow on Monday as authorities reported 58 new Covid-19 cases outside areas under lockdown, while Beijing pressed on with testing millions of people on a May Day holiday few were celebrating, Reuters reported.

Tough coronavirus measures in Shanghai have stirred rare public anger, with millions of the city's 25 million people stuck indoors for more than a month, some sealed inside fenced off residential compounds, and many struggling to secure daily necessities.

Shanghai residents breathed a sigh of relief at the weekend on news that no cases had been confirmed outside areas under lockdown for two days, but disappointment came on Monday with the report of the 58 new infections.

Authorities did not comment on the new cases at a media briefing but members of the public weighed in online.

"They announced that they stamped out cases at the community level too early," one person commented on the Weibo social media platform.

Still, many people also took heart from data that showed encouraging trends, with 32 new deaths on Sunday, compared with 38 a day earlier, and a total of 6,804 new local cases, down from 7,189 the previous day, according to Reuters.

"There is hope for May," said another Weibo user.

Despite the drop in cases, more fences were erected at some residential blocks in Shanghai on Monday, although authorities said employees of companies the government has put on a production priority list could apply for a pass if the building they lived in had no cases for seven days.

The coronavirus first emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late 2019 and for two years authorities managed to keep outbreaks largely under control with lockdowns and travel bans.

But the fast-spreading Omicron variant has tested China's "zero-Covid" policy this year, an important one for President Xi Jinping who is expected to secure a precedent-breaking third leadership term in the autumn.

China's COVID policy is increasingly out of step with the rest of the world, where many governments have eased restrictions, or thrown them off altogether, in a bid to "live with Covid" even though infections are spreading.

New Zealand, which has had some of the toughest curbs in the world, finally opened its border on Monday, welcoming thousands of travelers from around the world for the first time since the beginning of the pandemic. 

China has given no hint of deviating from its policy despite a mounting toll on the world's second-largest economy, and ripples of disruption through global supply chains, Reuters reported.

In the capital, home to 22 million people, authorities tightened Covid restrictions over the five-day Labor Day holiday that runs through Wednesday, traditionally one the busiest tourist seasons. 

Beijing, with dozens of daily infections in an outbreak in its second week, has not locked down, instead relying, at least for now, on mass testing to locate and isolate infections.

Beijing's restaurants are closed for dining in and some apartment blocks are sealed shut. The streets are quiet and the residents who do venture out have to show negative coronavirus tests to enter most public venues.

Authorities are tracking down close contacts of confirmed cases, warning them to stay at home and contact authorities, and calling on everyone to abide by instructions.

China reported 7,822 new Covid-19 cases on Sunday, down from 8,329 new cases a day earlier, the National Health Commission said on Monday. 

All of China's 32 new deaths were in Shanghai, taking the country's overall death toll since the virus emerged to 5,092.

India, the only country with a comparable population to China's 1.4 billion people, has officially recorded more than half a million deaths, though some health experts believe its toll is even higher, according to Reuters.

The Supreme Court on Monday upheld both the right of an individual against forcible vaccination and the government’s current vaccination policy to protect communitarian health, but found certain vaccine mandates imposed by State governments/Union Territories, which tend to deny access to basic welfare measures and freedom of movement to unvaccinated individuals, disproportionate, The Hindu reported.

A Bench led by Justice L. Nageswara Rao said that such vaccine mandates wilted in the face of “emerging scientific opinion” that the risk of transmission of COVID-19 infection from unvaccinated individuals was almost on par with that from vaccinated persons.

The court directed the Centre to set up a virtual public platform at the earliest to facilitate individuals and private doctors to report adverse vaccine events without compromising their privacy, according to The Hindu.

“Information related to adverse events is crucial to create awareness about vaccines and their efficiency, apart from contributing to scientific studies about the pandemic... There is a pertinent need for collection of data on adverse events and wider participation,” Justice Rao, who authored the judgment, observed.

Kolkata Knight Riders defeated Rajasthan Royals by seven wickets in a return leg IPL match on Monday, The Indian Express reported.

Invited to bat, skipper Sanju Samson smashed seven fours and a six in his 49-ball 54, while Shimron Hetmyer provided late charge with an unbeaten 13-ball 27 as RR scored 152 for five.

However, Jos Buttler (22), Riyan Parag (19) and Karun Nair (13) got starts but couldn’t capitalise.

Tim Southee (2/46) scalped two wickets, while Umesh Yadav(1/24), Anukul Roy (1/28) and Shivam Mavi (1/33) accounted for one each. Nitish Rana (48 not out), Rinku Singh (42 not out) and Shreyas Iyer (34) then chipped in with useful contributions as KKR romped home, scoring 158 for three in 19.1 overs, according to The Indian Express.

Cristiano Ronaldo continues to be the shining light in an otherwise disappointing season for Manchester United.

Make that 18 goals in the English Premier League for the Portugal superstar after he converted a penalty that he earned himself in a 3-0 victory over Brentford on Monday.

Ronaldo also had a goal disallowed at Old Trafford for a narrow offside as United saved one of its best performances of the season for its final home game. Bruno Fernandes and Raphael Varane — with his first in English football — were the other scorers.

The victory kept alive -- at least mathematically -- sixth-placed United’s chance of finishing in the top four and qualifying for next season’s Champions League.

United, though, has only two games remaining and is five points behind fourth-placed Arsenal and three behind Tottenham, with both rivals still having four to play.

Ronaldo, who has netted in each of his last four games, is third on the league’s list of top scorers behind Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah (22) and Tottenham’s Son Heung-min (19), Associated Press reported.

And he’ll be back again next season, unlike some of the other players in United’s team.

United fans gave standing ovations to departing veterans Nemanja Matic and Juan Mata as they were substituted on their final Old Trafford appearances. It was also the last home game in charge for interim manager Ralf Rangnick, who will be replaced by Erik ten Hag during the offseason.

Monday marked a year since the postponement of United’s home match against Liverpool, when fans made clear their anger at the ownership of the Glazer family in the wake of the European Super League debacle.

Supporters have protested at each of United’s final three home games and the anti-Glazer sentiment was apparent before and during the victory against Brentford.

It was the first match that Brentford had lost with Christian Eriksen in the team and he pulled the strings in the London club’s first competitive match at Old Trafford since 1975, according to the Associated Press.

Anthony Elanga set the first goal in the ninth minute, scampering down the right and crossing for Fernandes to volley home.

Ronaldo was proving a handful, forcing David Raya into an awkward save from a long-range free kick, then furiously claiming he should have had a penalty following Mads Bech Sorensen’s challenge.

Then Ronaldo smartly flicked a pass into Mata, who lashed narrowly wide of the near post on his first Premier League start of the season. The roles were reversed when Mata broke down the left and sent a low cross that Ronaldo squeezed past Raya. The provider and scorer celebrated together, only for the goal to be ruled out following a VAR review.

United created breathing space in the 61st minute when Ronaldo was bundled over in the box by Rico Henry before sending Raya the wrong way in front of an elated Stretford End.

Ahead of the final goal, Pontus Jansson nearly turned a cross from Ronaldo into his own goal but it went behind for a corner. Telles swung it in and Varane hooked home the ball via a minor deflection, Associated Press reported.

Attacks have resumed on Mariupol's steel works, despite hundreds of civilians remaining trapped inside, a Ukrainian officer has said, BBC reported.

The Azovstal plant was being shelled by "all kinds of weapons", National Guard commander Denys Shlega said on Monday.

On Sunday a number of civilians who had sheltered inside the last resistance stronghold managed to escape.

But "several dozen small children are still in the bunkers underneath the plant", the commander said.

The shelling on the plant in the southern port city, which has been under intense Russian bombardment for weeks, began as soon as the civilians who had been evacuated left, he told Ukrainian television, according to BBC.

On Monday evening, footage emerged apparently showing a massive fire at the Azovstal, in what social media users said was a result of Russian bombardment.

A first group of evacuees from the steelworks were expected to arrive in the Ukrainian-controlled city of Zaporizhzhia on Monday - but the rescue efforts have run into delays, the BBC's Laura Bicker, who is in the city, reports.

It is not clear what is causing the hold-up, she says. The convoy is on its way, but the buses have hundreds of miles to travel along a road which is - in part - rubble. They also have to go through a number of Russian checkpoints. 

Those who left Mariupol on Monday were evacuated with the support of the United Nations (UN) and the International Committee of the Red Cross, which organised an official convoy.

Russia said some evacuees had been taken to a village controlled by Moscow-backed separatists. But state media later reported that they would be free to travel onwards to Ukrainian-held territory if they wanted to.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the news that around 100 people were heading for Zaporizhzhia, which is about 140 miles (230km) north-west of Mariupol, BBC reported.

"Grateful to our team! Now they, together with UN, are working on the evacuation of other civilians from the plant," he wrote on Twitter.

Some people have spent many weeks sheltering in the Azovstal steelworks, with reports suggesting food, water and medicine supplies are all running low. 

"The situation has become a sign of a real humanitarian catastrophe," Ukraine's Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said.

One Russian news report estimated the number of civilians still in the plant was more than 500, according to BBC.

The third edition of Nepal-Switzerland bilateral consultations was held in Kathmandu on Monday.

During the meeting, the two sides exchanged views on matters of common interest, including the bilateral relations and cooperation between the two countries, regional cooperation, cooperation within the multilateral frameworks and global issues such as climate change, migration, and human rights, read a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The discussions also covered Nepal’s graduation from the least developed country status in 2026, Covid-19 related support as well as meeting the Sustainable Development Goals. 

The two sides reviewed all aspects of bilateral relations and discussed the possibilities of enhancing engagement in the areas of trade, investment and tourism, according to the statement.

The Nepali side thanked the Swiss government for thelongstanding cooperation to Nepal as a priority countryand stated that such cooperation will be vital in moving the country forward along the path of economic recovery, green growth and sustainable graduation from the LDC status. 

The Swiss side expressed readiness to work with Nepal in further strengthening bilateral relations for the benefit of both countries. The Swiss side also stated that its development cooperation will continue in Nepal through the Swiss Cooperation Strategy 2023-26, the Ministry said.

The mechanism of Bilateral Consultations was established in 2015 between the two Foreign Ministries. 

The previous meeting of the mechanismwas held in June 2018

United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres, has said that without freedom of the press, there are no real democratic societies. Without freedom of the press, there is no freedom, he said.

In his message on World Press Freedom Day, the UN chief said that the threats to the freedom of journalists and media workers are growing by the day.

 From global health to the climate crisis, corruption, and human rights abuses, they face increased politicization of their work and attempts to silence them from many sides, the UN chief said. He further added that digital technology has democratized access to information. But it has also created serious challenges.

The business models of many social media platforms are based not on increasing access to accurate reporting, but on increasing engagement – which often means provoking outrage and spreading lies, he said.

The Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ) was named on Tuesday as the winner of this year‘s UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize, following the international jury‘s recommendation.

The BAJ was formed in 1995 as a non-governmental association of media workers with the objective of promoting freedom of expression and indepenent journalism in Belarus.

It brings together over 1,300 associated journalists, and is a member of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and of the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ).

Since the disputed presidential election in Belarus in August 2020, which drew millions onto the streets in protest during the ensuing months, basic human rights have been in the crosshairs.

In March this year, the UN human rights office produced a Human Rights Council-mandated report on the situation in the European nation, which said the Government’s continuing crackdown had violated the rights of hundreds of thousands.

“The examination not only lays bare the violations inflicted on people trying to exercise their fundamental human rights, but highlights the inability of victims to access justice”, said UN rights chief, Michelle Bachelet.

In August 2021, following a police raid on the office of the BAJ, the Supreme Court of Belarus ordered the dissolution of the organization, at the request of the country’s Ministry of Justice.

“By awarding the prize to the BAJ, we are standing by all journalists around the world who criticize, oppose and expose authoritarian politicians and regimes, by transmitting truthful information and promoting freedom of expression”, said Alfred Lela, Chair of the Prize‘s international jury, and founder and director of an Albanian media organization.

“Today we salute and praise them; we find a way to say: we are with you, and we value your courage”.

The head of UNESCO, Audrey Azoulay, noted that for 25 years, the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano Prize “has been calling the world’s attention to the bravery of journalists around the world who sacrifice so much in the pursuit of truth and accountability.

“Once again, we are inspired by their example and reminded of the importance of ensuring the right of journalists everywhere to report freely and safely.