Former Maldives president Mohamed Nasheed is conscious after life-saving surgery, his family said on Saturday, as police made two arrests in connection with a blast they said was being treated as a terror attack.

A drawing of a bear's head by Leonardo da Vinci is seen fetching up to $16.7 million, potentially setting a record, when it heads to auction in July, Christie's said on Saturday.

India recorded more than 4,000 coronavirus deaths in a day for the first time and more states imposed lockdowns Saturday in a desperate bid to halt the devastating new surge.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) approved for emergency use a Covid-19 vaccine from China's state-owned drugmaker Sinopharm on Friday, bolstering Beijing's push for a bigger role in inoculating the world.

A large segment of a Chinese rocket is expected to make an uncontrolled re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere on the weekend, but Beijing has downplayed fears and said there is a very low risk of any damage.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson yesterday welcomed early election results in Britain’s first major vote since Brexit and the pandemic, including a stunning by-election victory for his Conservative party in an opposition Labour stronghold.

Germany seems to have halted a surge of coronavirus infections driven by the British variant, its health minister said yesterday, cautioning however against lifting restrictions precipitously.

Britain yesterday announced it was lifting a coronavirus ban on people in England going on holiday to Portugal and Israel due to their low infection and high vaccination rates.

The largest Kashmir sapphire ever auctioned and a royal tiara which everyone can try on via Instagram are the stars of this year’s May magnificent jewels sales in Geneva.

Travellers entering the Philippines will be required to undergo 14 days of quarantine, up from a week previously, as authorities try to contain more infectious coronavirus variants, the presidential spokesman said yesterday.

A Nepali sherpa scaled Mount Everest for a record 25th time yesterday, an official said, beating his own record after he ascended as part of a group that was the first to reach the summit in more than a year.

India’s main opposition leader Rahul Gandhi warned yesterday that unless the deadly second Covid-19 wave sweeping the country was brought under control it would devastate India as well as threaten the rest of the world.