New COVID strain: A fresh blow to Britain’s economy

Activists and doctors have successfully had abortion bans temporarily blocked in several US states. In Florida, the presiding judge said that the state ban violated a woman's right to privacy.

New Delhi has imposed a federal ban on some single-use plastics in a country that generates around 4 million tons of the material every year. Offenders can net hefty fines or a five-year jail sentence.

Trafficking of timber is rampant in the country because of the high demand for rosewood in China.

Abortion clinics in Florida and Mississippi were unsuccessful in putting up a legal fight to continue providing the procedure. Other states are likely to soon follow.

US President Joe Biden's administration remains divided on whether to allow some of the tariffs to expire to ease inflation or renew them to maintain leverage over Beijing.

The United Arab Emirates has placed a ban on the issuance of visas to Nigerians after cult clashes between rival groups in Sharjah. This is coming days after a video surfaced on social media showing a group of men with machetes were yelling in an apartment parking lot, chasing one another, and damaging public properties.

Free speech advocates are concerned the new government of Ferdinand Marcos will continue cracking down on independent media in an attempt to whitewash the history of his father's brutal dictatorship.

West African political bloc ECOWAS slaps sanctions on the military junta ruling Guinea. Failure to provide a plan for a return to civilian rule has resulted in the junta's assets being frozen, with the threat of more severe sanctions also laid on the table.

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern's four-day trip to Antarctica was to mark the 65th anniversary of Scott Base — the nation's research station on the ice-covered continent.

Afghanistan's ultra-conservative authorities have ordered that women should no longer be allowed to enter amusement parks. The decree comes after a wider announcement restricting access to public spaces.

The critically acclaimed film, and Pakistan's Oscar entry, came under pressure from religious leaders. Pakistani authorities have now prohibited its screening in cinemas.

The Taliban said they were suspending university classes for women until further notice, once more restricting women's access to formal education. The decision was announced after a meeting of the Taliban government.