World battling with second wave of raging pandemic

An anti-lockdown protester takes part in a march in London, Britain, on Saturday. The spread of coronavirus is on a spiraling trend in many parts of the world, and record daily increases in infections have been refreshed more frequently in some European countries amid the second wave of the COVID-19.SD-Agencies

S. Korea continues flu vaccine plan despite deaths

Fifty-nine South Koreans have died after getting flu shots, South Korea’s health authorities said on Monday.

Among the deaths, 52 of them were over the age of 70, said the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), adding that no direct link was found between the death and the flu shots after investigating the cause of 46 deaths.

The health authorities also said that some people had reported mild side effects including at the vaccination site, but no more severe and abnormal effects.

KDCA decided to continue the government-led free flu vaccination plan, as they didn’t find direct links between the vaccination and death of the people, who took the same flu shots.

Samsung Electronics chairman dies

Lee Kun-hee, the ailing Samsung Electronics chairman who transformed the small television maker into a global giant of consumer electronics but whose leadership was also marred by corruption convictions, died on Sunday. He was 78.

Lee died with his family members by his side, including his only son and Samsung vice chairman Lee Jae-yong, the company said in a statement.

Samsung didn’t announce the cause of his death, but Lee had been hospitalized since May 2014 after suffering a heart attack and the younger Lee has been running Samsung, South Korea’s biggest company.

Japan, Britain sign free trade agreement

Japan and Britain signed a free trade agreement on Friday, the first such major post-Brexit deal, reducing tariffs on goods like Yorkshire lamb sold in Japan as well as auto parts for Japan’s Nissan plant.

Appearing with Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, British International Trade Secretary Liz Truss called the agreement a “landmark” as the first major trade deal for Britain as it becomes once again an independent trading nation.

The deal, expected to boost British trade with Japan by 15 billion pounds (US$19.5 billion) annually, will also make it easier for British companies to operate in Japan.

Obama blasts Trump’s tweets, track record

Former U.S. President Barack Obama returned to the campaign trail on October 21 with a blistering attack on Donald Trump with less than two weeks to go before the Republican president’s Election Day face-off with Democratic nominee Joe Biden.

Speaking at a drive-in rally in Philadelphia on behalf of Biden, his former vice president, and Democratic running mate Kamala Harris, Obama offered his fiercest critique yet of his successor.

US spacecraft touches asteroid surface

A NASA spacecraft descended to an asteroid on October 20 and, dodging boulders the size of buildings, momentarily touched the surface to collect a handful of cosmic rubble for return to Earth.

It was a first for the United States — only Japan has scored asteroid samples. “Touchdown declared,” a flight controller announced to cheers and applause.

Confirmation came from the Osiris-Rex spacecraft as it made contact with the surface of the asteroid Bennu more than 320 million kilometers away. But it could be a week before scientists know how much, if much of anything, was grabbed and whether another try will be needed.(SD-Agencies)