1Microsoft to continue talks to buy TikTok's US operationsMonday, August 3, 2020

US tech giant Microsoft has confirmed that it is continuing talks to purchase the US operations of Chinese-owned video-sharing app TikTok. Microsoft boss Satya Nadella had a conversation with President Donald Trump about the acquisition on Sunday, the tech firm said. Microsoft stressed that it "fully appreciates the importance"... Read More

2TikTok: Pompeo says Trump to crack down on Chinese software in coming daysMonday, August 3, 2020

US President Donald Trump will take action "in the coming days" against Chinese-owned software that he believes pose a national security risk, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said. Mr Pompeo said popular video app TikTok was among those "feeding data directly to the Chinese Communist Party". His comments came days... Read More

3S Africa deputy president is 'at home and well'Monday, August 3, 2020

South Africa's Deputy president David Mabuza is at "home and well", his office has said following concerns on his health status. "Anything contrary to this is a malicious and unfortunate rumour," his spokesperson said in a statement. Three South African cabinet ministers have so far contracted coronavirus and have... Read More

4Kenyan nurse dies of Covid-19 after childbirthMonday, August 3, 2020

A Kenyan nurse has succumbed to Covid-19 days after delivering her first born baby while undergoing treatment for the disease in hospital. Local media report that the nurse was admitted at a hospital west of the capital, Nairobi, and had initially tested negative for Covid-19. Her condition worsened and she was admitted... Read More

5South Africa final year students resume classesMonday, August 3, 2020

Final year students in secondary schools in South Africa will on Monday resume classes after a one-week break. President Cyril Ramaphosa closed all schools last week to limit the spread of coronavirus after a surge in cases among learners, but said they will be gradually reopened over three weeks. Final year students... Read More

6Nigerians' double blow: Currency woes and Covid-19Monday, August 3, 2020

Entrepreneurs in oil-rich Nigeria are finding it difficult to weather the economic fallout of the deadly coronavirus pandemic and a plummeting currency. Amid the lockdown a dispute between Russia and Saudi Arabia sent the price of the fossil fuel tumbling, dragging down the value of the Nigerian currency with it. With... Read More

7US entering 'different' phase of coronavirus outbreakMonday, August 3, 2020

One of President Trump's top medical advisers has warned that the US is entering a new phase in its fight against the coronavirus pandemic. Deborah Birx told CNN the disease was "extraordinarily widespread" across the country and a greater threat than when the outbreak first began. She said it was now affecting rural... Read More

8Coronavirus: Iran cover-up of deaths revealed by data leakMonday, August 3, 2020

The number of deaths from coronavirus in Iran is nearly triple what Iran's government claims, a BBC Persian service investigation has found. The government's own records appear to show almost 42,000 people died with Covid-19 symptoms up to 20 July, versus 14,405 reported by its health ministry. The number of people... Read More

9Zimbabwe agriculture minister dies aged 65Wednesday, July 29, 2020

Zimbabwe's Agriculture Minister Perence Shiri has died, according to an announcement by President Emmerson Mnangagwa. The 65-year-old minister died at a private hospital in the capital, Harare, according to local media. The minister's driver is reported to have recently succumbed to Covid-19. President Mnangagwa... Read More

10Probe starts on police beating of Kenyan lawmakerWednesday, July 29, 2020

Kenya's police watchdog has launched investigations into Tuesday's brutal conduct of four police officers pictured beating a female lawmaker in the capital, Nairobi. The police were deployed to the Nairobi County Assembly to disperse lawmakers who had tried to impeach the Speaker amid chaotic scenes, according to local... Read More