
-
Sinner vows to play US Open after Cincy retirement
-
Leeds beat Everton for perfect start to Premier League return
-
'Ketamine Queen' to plead guilty over drugs that killed Matthew Perry
-
Guirassy sends struggling Dortmund past Essen in German Cup
-
Stocks under pressure as Zelensky-Trump talks underway
-
Alcaraz wins Cincinnati Open as Sinner retires
-
Trump floats Ukraine security pledges in talks with Zelensky and Europeans
-
Doak joins Bournemouth as Liverpool exodus grows
-
Excessive force used against LA protesters: rights group
-
Panama hopes to secure return of US banana giant Chiquita
-
'Things will improve': Bolivians look forward to right's return
-
Trump welcomes Zelensky with fresh optimism on peace deal
-
Israeli controls choke Gaza relief at Egypt border, say aid workers
-
Air Canada flight attendants vow to defy latest back-to-work order
-
Hurricane Erin drenches Caribbean islands, threatens US coast
-
Europeans arrive for high-stakes Trump and Zelensky talks
-
Trump, Zelensky and Europeans meet in bid to resolve split over Russia
-
Hamas accepts new Gaza truce plan: Hamas official
-
Stocks under pressure ahead of Zelensky-Trump talks
-
Russian attacks kill 14 in Ukraine ahead of Trump-Zelensky talks
-
Lassana Diarra seeks 65 mn euros from FIFA and Belgian FA in transfer case
-
Air Canada flight attendants face new pressure to end strike
-
Alonso says 'no excuses' as Real Madrid prepare for La Liga opener
-
Deadly wildfires rage across Spain as record area of land burnt
-
Swedish ex-govt adviser goes on trial over mislaid documents
-
Injured Springboks captain Kolisi out for four weeks
-
Irish literary star Sally Rooney pledges UK TV fees to banned pro-Palestine group
-
Stocks mixed ahead of Trump-Zelensky talks
-
Son of Norway princess charged with four rapes
-
Forest sign French forward Kalimuendo
-
Zelensky warns against 'rewarding' Russia after Trump urges concessions
-
FIFA boss condemns racial abuse in German Cup games
-
Spain and Portugal battle wildfires as death toll mounts
-
Joao Felix says late Jota 'will forever be part of football history'
-
Javelin star Kitaguchi finds new home in small Czech town
-
Rain halts rescue operation after Pakistan floods kill hundreds
-
Zelensky says Russia must end war, after Trump pressures Ukraine
-
US envoy says Israel's turn to 'comply' as Lebanon moves to disarm Hezbollah
-
Fight to save last forests of the Comoros unites farmers, NGOs
-
Hong Kong court hears closing arguments in tycoon Jimmy Lai's trial
-
Five killed in Russian drone attack on Ukraine apartment block
-
Myanmar junta sets December 28 poll date despite raging civil war
-
German minister says China 'increasingly aggressive'
-
Singapore key exports slip in July as US shipments tumble 42.7 pct
-
German great Mueller has goal ruled out on MLS debut for Vancouver
-
Zelensky, European leaders head to US for talks on peace deal terms
-
Tourism deal puts one of Egypt's last wild shores at risk
-
Two right-wing candidates headed to Bolivia presidential run-off
-
Australian court fines Qantas US$59 million for illegal layoffs
-
Games industry in search of new winning combo at Gamescom 2025

North Korea confirms first Covid-19 death in 'explosive' outbreak
North Korea confirmed its first ever Covid-19 death on Friday, saying fever was spreading "explosively" nationwide and tens of thousands of people were being isolated and treated after falling sick.
The nuclear-armed country only reported its first Covid cases Thursday, saying it was moving into "maximum emergency epidemic prevention system" after sick patients in the capital Pyongyang tested positive for Omicron.
North Korea has been under a rigid coronavirus blockade since the start of the pandemic in 2020, but with massive Omicron outbreaks in all neighbouring countries, experts said it was only a matter of time before Covid snuck in.
"A fever whose cause couldn't be identified explosively spread nationwide from late April," the official Korean Central News Agency said.
"Six persons died (one of them tested positive for the BA.2 sub-variant of Omicron,)" it added.
With its 25 million people not vaccinated against Covid, North Korea's crumbling health infrastructure would struggle to deal with a major outbreak, experts say.
"On May 12 alone, some 18,000 persons with fever occurred nationwide and as of now up to 187,800 people are being isolated and treated," KCNA said.
Leader Kim Jong Un -- seen wearing a mask on state TV for the first time -- oversaw an emergency meeting of the Politburo on Thursday and ordered nationwide lockdowns in a bid to halt the spread of the virus.
On Friday, KCNA said Kim visited the state emergency epidemic prevention headquarters and "learned about the nationwide spread of Covid-19".
"It is the most important challenge and supreme tasks facing our Party to reverse the immediate public health crisis situation at an early date," KCNA added.
- Military parade -
It is likely that the massive nationwide outbreak is linked to a huge military parade held in Pyongyang on April 25, said Cheong Seong-chang of the Sejong Institute.
"Holding a military parade attended by a large crowd, when Omicron was raging in neighboring China, shows Pyongyang was overconfident in their capabilities to fight and prevent the virus," he told AFP.
North Korea was likely to see "major chaos" due to the rapid spread of Omicron, he said, given that the country is currently reporting nearly 20,000 cases in a single day.
"If the death toll from Omicron spikes, Pyongyang may have to ask for China's support," he added.
Beijing, Pyongyang's sole major ally and benefactor, said Thursday that it was ready to assist North Korea with its Covid-19 outbreak.
But China, the world's only major economy to still maintain a zero-Covid policy, is itself battling multiple Omicron outbreaks -- with some major cities, including financial hub Shanghai, under strict stay-at-home orders.
North Korea has previously turned down offers of Covid vaccines from China, as well as from the World Health Organization's Covax scheme.
Kim said Friday that the outbreak of fever "shows that there is a vulnerable point in the epidemic prevention system" and called for more lockdowns.
Kim "said that it is the top priority to block the virus spread by actively locking down areas and isolating and treating persons with fever in a responsible manner," KCNA reported.
Analysts said that China's experience with Omicron indicated lockdowns might not be successful, but with no antiviral treatment or vaccines, North Korea has few other options.
- Nuclear distraction -
North Korea test-fired three short range ballistic missiles, Seoul said Thursday -- shortly after confirming their first cases of Covid.
New South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol's administration slammed the North's "continuing provocations with a ballistic missile launch despite the outbreak of coronavirus," his security office said after a meeting.
After high-profile talks collapsed in 2019, North Korea has doubled down on weapons testing, conducting a blitz of launches so far this year, including intercontinental ballistic missiles.
Satellite imagery indicates North Korea is preparing to conduct a nuclear test, and the United States has warned this could come as soon as this month.
If Pyongyang needs aid -- vaccines and medicine -- they might need to delay the test, some analysts said, but others warned the Covid-19 outbreak could hasten things along.
"A nuclear test would be a good way to distract the public from the pandemic," Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies, told AFP.
P.Anderson--BTB