Town Hall News

BEIJING (Reuters) – Beijing’s subway has dropped mandatory mask requirements for travellers, local media reported on Sunday, days after a Chinese health expert said the threat of COVID-19 to humans is no longer at a serious level. The mask move is in line with broader measures by China, which said last week it was now no longer mandatory to wear face masks when using public transport, according to state media. […]

Left-hander Yusei Kikuchi struck out nine over six innings, and Toronto defeated visiting Tampa Bay 5-2 Saturday. The Rays entered the series having won their first 13 games of the season, tying a modern baseball record for best start (since 1900). Toronto has now won the first two games of the three-game set and sits three games back in the divisional race. Kikuchi (2-0) allowed one run, four hits and […]

De’Aaron Fox scored a game-high 38 points in his NBA postseason debut and teamed with Malik Monk for 28 fourth-quarter points as the Sacramento Kings edged the visiting Golden State Warriors 126-123 on Saturday night in Game 1 of their Western Conference first-round series. The game marked the Kings’ return to the playoffs for the first time in 17 years. Monk capped a 32-point performance off the bench with two […]

(Reuters) – Ukrainian and Russian armed forces are fighting extraordinarily bloody battles in the smashed eastern city of Bakhmut, but pro-Kyiv forces are still holding on, Ukraine’s military said on Saturday. FIGHTING * Fighters of Russia’s Wagner mercenary group have captured two more areas of Bakhmut, Russia’s Defence Ministry said on Saturday. * Russian missiles hit residential buildings in the eastern Ukrainian city of Sloviansk on Friday, killing 11 people, […]

By Hyonhee Shin SEOUL (Reuters) -South Korea fired warning shots toward a North Korean vessel that crossed the maritime border, South Korea’s military said on Sunday, a day after the incident that further raised tension over the North’s missile tests. The South’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said it fired warning shots and broadcast warnings to expel a North Korean patrol boat that breached the Northern Limit Line (NLL), the […]

(Reuters) -Merck & Co is in late-stage talks to acquire Prometheus Biosciences Inc to get its hands on promising immune disease treatments, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday citing people familiar with the matter. A deal could be announced as soon as Sunday, the people quoted said, though cautioning the talks could still fall apart. Prometheus, a clinical-stage biotechnology company specializing in therapeutic products for the treatment of immune-mediated […]

TOKYO (Reuters) -Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, a day after he was evacuated from an apparent attack, vowed to do everything possible to ensure the safety of Group of Seven leaders and senior ministers visiting his country through next month. Kishida escaped unhurt after a suspect threw what appeared to be a smoke bomb during an election campaign stop at a fishing port in western Japan. “This reflects an increasing […]

(Reuters) – Real Madrid midfielder Toni Kroos and winger Vinicius Jr will be available for their Champions League trip to Chelsea next week after missing Saturday’s LaLiga 2-0 win at Cadiz. Former Germany international Kroos and Brazil international Vinicius Jr, arguably Real’s most influential player this season, were left out of the game against lowly Cadiz in order to recover from leg muscle strains. “They couldn’t play today because they […]

By Katya Golubkova and Yuka Obayashi SAPPORO, Japan (Reuters) -The Group of Seven rich nations have agreed to speed up the development of renewable energy and called for reduced natural gas consumption as they aim to ramp up the phasing out of fossil fuels, the group said in a communique on Sunday. While members recognised the need to reduce gas consumption, however, they also said investment in the sector can […]