International news with relevance to Thai and regional readers
The World Health Organization (WHO) has certified Thailand’s anti-HIV drug Efavirenz developed by the Government Pharmaceutical Organization. GPO chairman Dr Sophon Mekthon told a press conference on Friday that Efavirenz tablet (600 grammes) was Thailand’s first anti-HIV drug and the only medication from Asean which has passed WHO prequalification programme and incorporated into WHO prequalified
KEVADIA, India (Reuters) – India on Wednesday inaugurated the world’s tallest statue, a $400-million effigy of independence hero Vallabhbhai Patel that towers nearly twice the height of New York’s Statue of Liberty. The 182-metre (597-ft) steel and bronze “Statue of Unity”, in the prime minister’s western home state of Gujarat, is part of his Hindu
Raging wildfires have killed seven people including a baby and a pregnant woman in a farming settlement along South Africa’s famed Garden Route, disaster management services said Monday. Firefighters have been battling to quell the blazes that started last week along the southern tourist trail. “So far we have confirmed that there are seven fatalities
Rain-soaked tourists in Venice were barred from an inundated St. Mark’s Square on Monday, as fierce winds and rains lashing much of the country drenched the floating city. As local authorities said the “acqua alta” (high water) peaked at 156 centimetres (61 inches) by early afternoon, the elevated wooden platforms usually placed on main passageways
United Nations chief Antonio Guterres has informed the Security Council that he wishes to appoint Norwegian diplomat Geir Pedersen as the next special envoy to Syria. Pedersen is currently Norway’s ambassador to China and has previously served as its envoy to the UN. “I am pleased to inform you of my intention to announce the
President Donald Trump said he will scrap a constitutional guarantee to citizenship for anyone born on US soil in a headline-grabbing move bolstering his anti-immigration platform a week before midterm elections. The surprise announcement, in an interview with Axios released in part on Tuesday, followed the dispatch of more than 5,000 regular troops to the
The first Franco-Chinese satellite was launched into orbit on Monday to study ocean surface winds and waves around the clock, better predict cyclones and improve scientists’ understanding of climate change. A Long March 2C carrier rocket blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in northwest China’s Gobi Desert at 0043 GMT to enter orbit
JAKARTA (Reuters) – A Lion Air flight with 189 people on board is believed to have sunk after crashing into the sea off Indonesia’s island of Java on Monday, shortly after takeoff from the capital on its way to the country’s tin-mining hub, officials said. A spokesman for Indonesia’s search and rescue agency said
LEICESTER, England- Leicester City soccer club chairman and owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha was among five people who were on board a helicopter which crashed next to the club’s stadium on Saturday, Reuters quoted a source close to the club as saying. Also on board the helicopter were a daughter of Vichai, two pilots and a fifth
King Power and Leicester City owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha was on board the helicopter that crashed in a ball of flames in the club’s stadium car park last night after a Premier League match in Leicester, British media reported. The Sun said the eight-seater helicopter belonging to 60-year-old chairman had flown from the King Power Stadium
STRASBOURG (Reuters) – European Union lawmakers moved on Wednesday to ban widely-used, throw-away plastics such as straws and cotton buds, and put a greater burden on manufacturers to recycle in an effort to clear up ocean pollution. Under the proposal, overwhelmingly backed by the European Parliament, 10 single-use plastic products with readily available alternatives would
STANBUL (REUTERS) – US President Donald Trump, in his toughest comments yet, said Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince bore ultimate responsibility for the operation that led to Jamal Khashoggi’s killing, piling pressure on his ally amid a global outcry over the journalist’s death. The Wall Street Journal published Trump’s remarks hours before Crown Prince Mohammed bin
