Russia imposes restrictions on 15 European media outlets
Russia has imposed restrictions on 15 European media outlets in response to EU sanctions on several Russian publications. The Russian Foreign Ministry said the move was a countermeasure to the EU’s 16th sanctions package introduced in February.
The ministry stated that the restrictions target media accused of spreading disinformation. It added that the decision may be reconsidered if the EU lifts its ban on Russian media, according to Xinhua.
Jhapa reports eight new COVID-19 cases
Jhapa, the district in Koshi Province, has received 15,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine against COVID-19, according to Ramesh Barakoti, Chief of the Health Office, Jhapa.
As per the newly implemented vaccination schedule, priority groups include individuals with weakened immune systems, children above the age of five, expectant mothers, and those in direct contact with healthcare workers or infected people.
The district has reported eight new COVID-19 cases. Of these, five are residents of Jhapa, while the remaining cases include one each from Morang, Ilam, and Dolakha.
Testing for suspected cases has been initiated at the Kakarbhitta border point in Mechinagar Municipality. Three health personnel have been deployed for the task. However, officials are yet to determine a designated health facility for referring serious cases, Barakoti added.
Trump global aid cuts risk 14 million deaths in five years, report says
President Donald Trump's move to cut most of the US funding towards foreign humanitarian aid could cause more than 14 million additional deaths by 2030, according to research published in The Lancet medical journal, BBC reported.
A third of those at risk of premature deaths were children, researchers projected.
Low- and middle-income countries were facing a shock "comparable in scale to a global pandemic or a major armed conflict," said Davide Rasella, who co-authored the report.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in March that over 80% of all programmes at the US Agency for International Development (USAID) had been cancelled. The Trump administration has taken aim at what it sees as wasteful spending, according to BBC.
US-Israeli backed Gaza aid group must be shut down, say 130 charities
More than 130 charities and other NGOs are calling for the controversial Israeli and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) to be shut down, BBC reported.
Over 500 Palestinians have been killed while seeking aid since the GHF started operating in late May, following Israel's three-month blockade of Gaza, the organisations said. Almost 4,000 have been injured.
The organisations, including Oxfam, Save the Children and Amnesty, say Israeli forces and armed groups "routinely" open fire on Palestinians seeking aid.
Israel denies its soldiers deliberately shoot at aid recipients, and has defended the GHF system, saying it provides direct assistance to people who need it, bypassing Hamas interference, according to BBC.
