S. Korean high school seniors return to school

A senior student has his temperature checked at the Kyungbock High School in Seoul, South Korea, on May 20. South Korean students began returning to schools on May 20 as their country prepares for a new normal amid the coronavirus pandemic. SD-Agencies

Netanyahu attacks justice system as trial begins

To the sounds of his impassioned supporters chanting outside, a defiant Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu strode into a Jerusalem courtroom on Sunday to face corruption charges in a long-awaited trial that has overshadowed three inconclusive elections and deeply divided the country.

As he entered the courthouse to become the country’s first sitting prime minister to go on trial, Netanyahu launched into a lengthy tirade against the nation’s justice system in which he accused police, prosecutors, judges and the media of a deep state-type conspiracy aimed to oust him against the will of the people.

Pakistan initiates inquiry into deadly plane crash

An inquiry has been launched into Friday’s plane crash that left 97 people killed in Pakistan’s southern port city of Karachi, the country’s aviation minister said on Saturday.

Apart from the investigation board formed by the government, a team from the aircraft’s makers will also visit the crash site for investigation, and the plane’s black box will be sent for decoding to further help the probe, Aviation Minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan told a media briefing, adding that the report will be made public within three months after which stern action will be taken against those found guilty.

He also announced a compensation of 1 million rupees (about US$6,227) each for the families of the 97 deceased passengers.

Preacher arrested for breaking coronavirus ban

Myanmar police arrested a Canadian pastor on May 20 for allegedly holding a service in defiance of a coronavirus ban on mass gatherings — after which he and dozens of his followers and their families became infected.

The Southeast Asian nation has so far only confirmed 193 cases and six deaths from the disease, although experts fear low numbers tested mean the true figures could be far higher.

Myanmar-born preacher David Lah, 43, is based out of Toronto, Canada, but often visits his motherland to give sermon tours. Myanmar introduced a ban on mass gatherings in mid-March.

Virus could push millions of Africans into poverty

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has warned that the coronavirus pandemic threatens Africa’s progress and could push millions into extreme poverty.

The U.N. chief said on May 20 in a video message launching a policy report on “The Impact of COVID-19 in Africa” that countries on the continent have responded swiftly to the crisis, and as of now reported cases are lower than feared with more than 2,500 deaths.

The virus is present in all African countries with most recording fewer than 1,000 cases, the 28-page U.N. report said.

One church service resulted in more than 100 infections

A single church service in Frankfurt, Germany, held in early May appears to have led to at least 107 reported cases of coronavirus in the area.

“This situation shows how important it is — especially during loosening of restrictions, which is now possible again — that we remain vigilant and do not become careless,” Kai Klose, health minister for Hesse (the state Frankfurt is in) said Sunday. “The virus is still there and wants to spread.”

(SD-Agencies)