Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

News

Hard Numbers: Undercounted US COVID deaths, India boosts Maldives, England's COVID antibodies, Namibia rebuffs Germany

Hard Numbers: Undercounted US COVID deaths, India boosts Maldives, England's COVID antibodies, Namibia rebuffs Germany

200,000: At least 200,000 more people have died in the US since March than in previous years during the same time frame, according to analysis conducted by the New York Times. This means that official government data is undercounting COVID-19 deaths in the US by at least 60,000, the Times says.


500 million: India has pledged $500 million towards a bridge project in the Maldives that would link the capital Malé to nearby islands. Investment in the island nation, which has become a key part of China's ambitious Belt and Road Initiative, reflects New Delhi's attempt to counter Beijing's influence in the region amid an intensifying rivalry between the two powers.

6: Nearly six percent of all people in England (3.4 million residents) contracted COVID-19 by the end of June, according to new research which tested 100,000 people for coronavirus antibodies. At least 13 percent of all people living in London have tested positive for COVID-19 antibodies, a sign of the vast scale of the outbreak in England.

10 million: Namibia has rebuffed a compensation package from Germany — totaling a reported 10 million euros — aimed at compensating the African nation for crimes committed there during German colonial rule (1884-1915) resulting in tens of thousands of indigenous deaths — often referred to as the 20th century's first genocide. Local media reports that part of the dispute is about using the term "reparations," with Germany favoring a less "evocative" term such as "healing the wounds."

More For You

Members of the Uyghurs diaspora gather in front of Alberta Legislature during the protest 'Stand in Support of East Turkistan' to commemorate the 1990 Barin Uprising, on April 6, 2024, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The East Turkestan independence movement seeks the region's independence for the Uyghur people from China. They advocate renaming the region from Xinjiang to East Turkestan, its historical name.

Members of the Uyghurs diaspora gather in front of Alberta Legislature during the protest 'Stand in Support of East Turkistan' to commemorate the 1990 Barin Uprising, on April 6, 2024, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The East Turkestan independence movement seeks the region's independence for the Uyghur people from China. They advocate renaming the region from Xinjiang to East Turkestan, its historical name.

Photo by Artur Widak/NurPhoto
Remember Xinjiang?There was a time, not long ago, when China’s crackdown on the Uyghurs, a Muslim minority group living in Xinjiang province in Northwestern China, was a hot topic – in the media, among human rights activists, and even among the world’s most powerful governments and international organizations. In 2021, the first Trump [...]
Russia's President Vladimir Putin and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi attend the India-Russia Business Forum in New Delhi, India, December 5, 2025.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi attend the India-Russia Business Forum in New Delhi, India, December 5, 2025.

Sputnik/Grigory Sysoyev/Pool via REUTERS
Putin leaves India with not much to show for itDespite the lavish ceremony, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting produced few concrete outcomes. India and Russia highlighted their “special” partnership and signed smaller agreements on minerals, pharmaceuticals, shipping, and trade frameworks. But on [...]
​Honduran presidential candidate Salvador Nasralla in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, on December 4, 2025.

Honduran presidential candidate Salvador Nasralla of the Liberal Party speaks during an interview with Reuters after alleging fraud in the highly contested vote count of the country's presidential election, in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, on December 4, 2025.

REUTERS/Fredy Rodriguez
23,900: There is finally some daylight in Honduras’ presidential election, as former Tegucigalpa Mayor Nasry Asfura – the far-right candidate whom US President Donald Trump endorsed – pulled ahead of former sports broadcaster Salvador Nasralla by 23,900 votes. With 87% of tally sheets counted, Asfura is now at 40.25%, while Nasralla – who is [...]
A mosque stands in an area affected by a deadly flash flood following heavy rains in Aceh Tamiang regency, Aceh province, Indonesia, December 4, 2025.

A mosque stands in an area affected by a deadly flash flood following heavy rains in Aceh Tamiang regency, Aceh province, Indonesia, December 4, 2025.

REUTERS/Ajeng Dinar Ulfiana
Indonesia identifies aggravator of Sumatra flood deathsAfter the death toll from cyclone-induced floods in Sumatra surpassed 800 – making it the most deadly natural disaster to hit the Indonesian island since the 2004 tsunami – the Indonesian government has pledged to take action against mining firms that illegally cleared forests, which may have [...]