Coughing, groaning, and gasping for breath, elderly Covid patients crammed hospital corridors in Shanghai yesterday as a wave of Covid-19 cases raged through the Chinese megacity.

China Tuesday condemned fresh Covid test requirements by around a dozen countries on passengers travelling abroad from its territory, warning it could take "counter measures" in response.

Some people in the Chinese cities of Beijing, Shanghai and Wuhan braved the cold and a rise in Covid-19 infections to return to regular activity yesterday, raising the prospect of a boost to the economy as more recover from infections.

Sri Lanka began a fresh austerity drive yesterday, freezing government recruitment as new taxes and higher electricity prices kicked in with authorities trying to secure an IMF bailout.

Islamic State yesterday claimed responsibility for an attack on Taliban forces in Kabul.

Ten people have been killed within six days in a sudden uptick in violence in the usually more peaceful Hindu south of disputed Indian-administered Kashmir, officials said yesterday.

India’s Supreme Court yesterday upheld the legality of the government decision in 2016 to demonetise 86 percent of the country’s cash in circulation, saying the decision was taken in consultation with the central bank and followed due process.

The head of Nasa has said that China could claim the moon as its own territory if it beats the US in the race to the lunar surface.

Hundreds of rescuers in Vietnam yesterday battled to free a 10-year-old boy who fell into a 35-metre-deep hole at a construction site two days ago.

India's Supreme Court today upheld the validity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi government's action to ban high-denomination currency notes over six years ago saying there was no flaw in the process of deciding to ban high-value currency notes.

An explosion at the entrance to a military airfield in the Afghan capital killed and wounded several people yesterday, an official told AFP.

China and the United States must pursue dialogue rather than confrontation and avoid the mistakes made during the Cold War, top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi said on Sunday in his first public comments since his appointment as head of the ruling Communist Party’s foreign affairs office.

Travellers from China now face restrictions when entering more than a dozen countries as concern grows over its surge in Covid-19 cases, with Australia the latest to demand a negative test before arrival.

Kim Jong Un has called for an “exponential” increase in North Korea’s nuclear arsenal, including mass producing tactical nuclear weapons and developing new missiles for nuclear counterstrikes, state media said yesterday.

The political party headed by jailed Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi condemned her latest sentence and said yesterday it would continue to oppose the junta whose court imposed it.

North Korea fired three short-range ballistic missiles yesterday, Seoul’s military said, adding a final salvo to Pyongyang’s record-breaking blitz of launches this year.

At least nine people were killed and 15 were left injured after a luxury bus and a sports utility vehicle (SUV) collided in Gujarat's Navsari district today.

The World Health Organization on Friday once again urged China's health officials to regularly share specific and real-time information on the Covid-19 situation in the country, as it continues to assess the latest surge in infections.

The United Nations said Thursday it would not stop providing help to Afghanistan despite the Taliban ban on women working in the country’s aid sector.

China has appointed Qin Gang, a trusted aide of President Xi Jinping, as its new foreign minister, state radio reported yesterday.