More than five million people are known to have died of Covid-19 worldwide, 19 months since the pandemic began, according to Johns Hopkins University. Vaccines have slowed the death rate, but some health experts say the true toll could be far higher. The milestone comes ami

Shops, restaurants and schools have shut in Moscow in a partial lockdown, as Russia battles record Covid deaths and infections. Only essential shops like supermarkets and pharmacies are allowed to open in the capital, while food outlets are only providing takeaways. Authori

A Texas nurse has been found guilty of the murder of four patients who died after he injected them with air following heart surgeries. William Davis, 37, was convicted of capital murder by a jury on Tuesday and could now face the death penalty. Prosecutors said he targeted

South Korea has launched its first homegrown rocket, stepping up the country's ambitions in space. The Korean Satellite Launch Vehicle II, known as Nuri, took off from Goheung, about 500km (310 miles) south of Seoul. President Moon Jae-in said the vehicle completed its full

US officials are investigating possible cases of Havana syndrome illness in Colombia, days before a visit by the Secretary of State, US media say. US embassy staff in Bogota may have been injured by the mysterious illness, which causes a painful sound in the ears, fatigue and dizzines

North Korea's leader has vowed to build an "invincible military" in the face of what it says are hostile policies from the United States, state media report. Kim Jong-un added that weapons development was for self-defence, and not to start a war. Mr Kim made the comments at

At least 25 people have been killed and many others injured in a bus crash in north-west Nepal, police say. The vehicle was travelling through Mugu district when it left the road shortly after midday on Tuesday, local media report. The cause of the crash is unclear, but som

More than 1.76 million people have been affected by severe flooding in China's northern Shanxi province, according to local media. Torrential rain last week led to houses collapsing and triggered landslides across more than 70 districts and cities in the province. Heavy rai

Taiwan will not bow to pressure from China and will defend its democratic way of life, President Tsai Ing-wen has said in a defiant speech amid heightened tensions over the island. "The more we achieve, the greater the pressure we face from China," she said. Her speech on T

The man regarded as the "father of Pakistan's nuclear bomb", Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan, has died aged 85 after being hospitalised with Covid-19. Dr Khan was hailed as a national hero for transforming his country into the world's first Islamic nuclear power. But he was also notor

President Biden has rejected an attempt by Donald Trump to withhold documents from the congressional committee investigating the Capitol riot. Mr Trump had asked that the records the committee requested remain hidden under executive privilege, which shields some presidential c

Journalists Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov have won the Nobel Peace Prize for their fights to defend freedom of expression in the Philippines and Russia. The Nobel committee called the pair "representatives of all journalists who stand up for this ideal". The editor

A suicide bomb attack on a mosque in the Afghan city of Kunduz has killed at least 50 people, officials say, in the deadliest assault since US forces left. Images on social media showed bodies and debris inside the mosque, used by the minority Shia Muslim community. More th

Recommendation of Mosquirix vaccine could potentially save hundreds of thousands of lives annually. The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday the only approved vaccine against malaria should be widely given to African children, potentially marking a major advance against a

At least 20 people have been killed after an earthquake struck Pakistan's Balochistan province early on Thursday, officials have told the BBC. Authorities say the death toll may increase, and that many people were killed when structures collapsed. Many of the dead wer

Stockholm(AP): The Nobel Prize for chemistry has been awarded to German scientist Benjamin List of the Max Planck Institute and Scotland-born scientist David WC MacMillan of Princeton University. They were cited for their work in developing a new way for building molecules known as asymmetric org

Several world leaders have denied wrongdoing after featuring in a huge leak of financial documents from offshore companies. Dubbed the Pandora Papers, the 12 million files constitute the biggest such leak in history. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Jordan's King Abdull

An oil slick off the coast of California has started washing ashore, killing fish, contaminating wetlands and closing beaches. About 3,000 barrels of oil have spread over an area covering 13 square miles (33 sq km), off the Orange County coast. Huntington Beach Mayo