Politics

Bloomberg Hong Kong police rejected an application by a pro-democracy labour group to hold a march on May 1, citing concerns about public health and security risks, the government said in a statement. The Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions had proposed to hold the march in groups of four spaced at least 1.5 metres apart. It expressed concern in ...

Bloomberg The US Supreme Court let President Donald Trump’s administration keep using a tough test to screen out green card applicants who might become dependent on government benefits, refusing to halt the policy because of the Covid-19 outbreak. With no published dissents, the justices rejected a request from a New York-led group of state and local governments that said emergency ...

Bloomberg Whatever the state of Kim Jong-un’s health, he has already put North Korea in its strongest position to resist US pressure in decades. Eight years after Kim filled the power vacuum left by the death of his reclusive father, Kim Jong Il, North Korea is more secure and less isolated. The 36-year-old supreme leader has achieved two key marks ...

Bloomberg Scotland broke with the UK government to set out what needs to happen before the nationwide lockdown imposed to limit the spread of the coronavirus can be lifted. It is time for a “grown up” conversation with the country, Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon told reporters in Edinburgh on Thursday, days after UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock ruled out ...

Bloomberg India has opened a new all-weather access in a disputed part of its border with China to enable faster movement of troops and artillery, another potential irritant in relations between the two nuclear-armed neighbours. The new bridge, which can take 40 tons of weight, was built in Arunachal Pradesh in India’s remote northeast, a region that’s claimed by China ...

Bloomberg The Covid-19 pandemic has the potential to reverse years of progress in reducing maternal and child mortality worldwide by impairing access to medical care in poorer countries, a health financing group warned. If Covid-19 were to cause similar disruptions as the 2014-16 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, almost 1.2 million children and 57,000 mothers could die over just the ...

Bloomberg The US House gaveled amid extraordinary health precautions to begin debate leading up to expected final passage of a $484 billion interim coronavirus rescue plan to bolster the American economy. With a roll-call vote anticipated by mid-afternoon, members were expected to take turns in the chamber to debate the bill, the first time they have convened as a group ...

Bloomberg As President Donald Trump prepares to pause immigration into the US, the court system that handles the removal of immigrants is projected to issue nearly 60% more deportation orders than last year. With the rest of the US legal system grinding to a near halt amid the pandemic, at the nation’s 69 federal immigration courts cleaning crews clad in ...

Bloomberg President Donald Trump said he’s ordered the US Navy to destroy any Iranian gun boats that harass American ships at sea. Trump issued the warning “to shoot down and destroy” the ships in a tweet on Wednesday. It comes after 11 gunboats from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps crossed the bows and sterns of American ships at close range ...

Bloomberg Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government announced an executive order to ensure the safety of medical staff after they threatened to protest against rising incidences of violence over fears doctors are spreading the deadly coronavirus. Cabinet on Wednesday amended laws to convert such violent acts into non-bailable offenses and provide compensation for injury or loss to property. Prison terms range ...