Olympics will be held without spectators.

The Olympics will take place without spectators in host city Tokyo, organisers said recently, as a resurgent coronavirus forced Japan to declare a state of emergency in the capital that will run throughout the event. Although widely expected, the move marked a sharp turnabou…

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World's tallest sandcastle unveiled in Denmark.

At a height of 21.16 metres, and standing 3.5m higher than the previous record holder, the world's tallest sandcastle was unveiled in Denmark last week. The sandcastle built in Blokhus in northwest Denmark broke the Guinness World record previously held by a sandcastle c…

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Former Microsoft CEO becomes ninth member of $100B club.

Steve Ballmer, the former chief executive officer of Microsoft Corp., has a net worth of more than $100 billion, making him the ninth person in the world to reach that lofty plateau.  Oracle Corp. founder Larry Ellison fell just short of making it an even 10, ending Wednesda…

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Paris is about to quit the Franco-German Maritime Airborne Warfare System (MAWS).

Paris is about to leave the Franco-German Maritime Airborne Warfare System (MAWS) defence procurement programme, following Germany's decision to buy maritime patrol aircraft from Boeing. Germany's defence ministry said at the end of June that it would buy five Boeing…

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Tokyo 2020 Olympic torch relay cancelled.

The Olympic torch relay has been cancelled on Tokyo's streets, as fears over the spread of Covid-19 continue to plague the Games. Starting Friday, public relay events in the city will be replaced with flame-lighting ceremonies streamed online - the latest setback for the…

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The World Health Organization (WHO) has updated its patient care guidelines.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has updated its patient care guidelines to include interleukin-6 receptor blockers, a class of medicines that are lifesaving in patients who are severely or critically ill with COVID-19, especially when administered alongside corticostero…

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Haiti President Jovenel Moise assassinated at his home.

Haiti President, Jovenel Moise was assassinated and his wife wounded in an attack at their home, the interim prime minister announced an act that risks further destabilizing the Caribbean nation beset by gang violence and political volatility.  The president faced steep oppo…

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Sri Lanka is in alert on most dangerous Corona variant found in Peru.

Sri Lanka too could expect the arrival of the most dangerous variant  of coronavirus called Lambda, Deputy Director General of Health Services Dr. Hemantha Herath yesterday told the media. Dr. Hearth said that the Lambda variant had been detected in more than 30 countries du…

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U.S. issues moratorium on death penalty at federal level.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has issued a moratorium on federal executions while it reviews policies and procedures, the Department said in a statement. U.S. President Joe Biden had said on his campaign website that he would legislate the end of capital punishment a…

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Sri Lanka receives Future Policy Award 2021 on protection from hazardous chemicals.

Sri Lanka’s Control of Pesticides Act No. 33 of 1980 and the National Policy and Action Plan on Prevention of Suicide of 1997 are among the five inspiring and impactful laws and policies that won the Future Policy Award 2021. The Award, often referred to as the ‘Oscar on Bes…

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No survivors from plane crash in Russia.

There are no survivors after a plane carrying 28 people crashed in the far east of Russia on Tuesday 06 July 2021, Russian news agencies cited rescue officials as saying. The Antonov An-26 twin-engined turboprop was en route from the regional capital Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky…

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Hemantha Withanage elected as new chair of Friends of the Earth International.

Hemantha Withanage, Executive Director of the Centre for Environmental Justice in Sri Lanka has been elected as the chair of Friends of the Earth International. Hemantha follows Karin Nansen of Uruguay, whose two terms as chair ended in June 2021. A science graduate from the…

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Sha'Carri Richardson not picked for 4x100 relay team, will miss Tokyo Olympics.

Runner Sha'Carri Richardson was not named to the U.S. relay team and will not compete in the Tokyo Olympics following her positive test result for marijuana, the governing body said Tuesday 07 July 2021. She will not be offered a shortened suspension to compete on the in…

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World Chocolate Day - 07 July.

Every year on July 07th, World Chocolate Day allows chocolate lovers around the world to indulge in their favorite treat without any guilt. The day also celebrates all kinds of goodies made from chocolate, including chocolate milk, hot chocolate, chocolate candy bar, chocol…

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China launches new Fengyun-3E meteorological satellite.

China has launched the new Fengyun-3E (FY-3E) meteorological satellite from the SLS-2 launch site at China’s Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre. The satellite is launched onboard the Long March-4C carrier rocket, which placed it into its planned orbit. Equipped with 11 remote se…

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Legendary Bollywood actor Dilip Kumar passes away.

Legendary Bollywood actor Mohammed Yusuf Khan, known professionally as Dilip Kumar passed away at the age 98. He was popularly known as the "tragedy king of Bollywood".  He was the first actor to win the Filmfare Award for Best Actor in 1954 and won it a total of 8…

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Nimali Liyanarachchi qualifies for Tokyo Olympics.

Sri Lankan athlete Nimali Liyanarachchi has qualified for the 800m Women’s event at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. The National Olympic Committee said Nimali Liyanarachchi qualified by Universality Place for Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games and she will represent Sri Lanka for Ath…

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Chinese astronauts carry out country's first spacewalk outside space station

Chinese astronauts on Sunday successfully carried out the country's first spacewalk outside their space station -- a significant milestone in its rapidly expanding space program. The spacewalk is only the second by Chinese astronauts since the Shenzhou 7 manned mission o…

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Tropical Storm Elsa poised to make landfall in Florida.

Tropical Storm Elsa, which has weakened from the first hurricane of the season, is poised to make landfall on the west coast of Florida on Wednesday, 07 July 2021. A warning is in force for a 200-mile (300km) stretch of the Gulf Coast north of Tampa Bay. The storm battered Cu…

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Pakistan rejects its 'baseless inclusion' in US child soldier recruiter list.

Reacting strongly to Pakistan’s inclusion in the Child Soldiers Prevention Act (CSPA) list by the United States, the Foreign Office said the move depicted “a factual error and lack of understanding”, and urged Washington to review the “baseless assertions” made against the …

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World Zoonoses Day - 06 July.

World Zoonoses Day is observed every year on July 6 to commemorate the first vaccination administered against a zoonotic disease like Ebola, Avian influenza, and West Nile virus. Zoonosis is an infectious disease that spread from non-human animals to humans. Zoonotic pathog…

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James Anderson takes 1000th first-class wicket.

Veteran England fast bowler James Anderson has added another feather to his cap as he completed 1000 wickets in first-class cricket. Anderson achieved the rare feat during Lancashire's County Championship clash against Kent in Manchester. Anderson is the leading wicket-…

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Norway's Karsten Warholm breaks men's 400 metres hurdles world record.

Karsten Warholm, a 25-year-old athlete from Norway, broke the long-standing world record in the 400m hurdles during the Bislett Games. Earlier the record was held by American hurdler Kevin Young for 29 years.  His mark of 46.78 seconds was set at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelon…

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Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter to mark 75th wedding anniversary.

Former president Jimmy Carter, the longest living president, has accomplished a lot in his 96 years, but his longest-running accomplishment is his marriage to former first lady Rosalynn Carter. The couple will celebrate their 75th anniversary on July 7, marking nearly eight…

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Veteren Film Director Richard Donner Dies.

Richard Donner, the prolific Hollywood director and producer whose helming credits include some of the most iconic movies of the 1970s and ’80s including the Christopher Reeve-starring Superman, The Goonies and the Mel Gibson-Danny Glover buddy cop series Lethal Weapon, has…

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Jeff Bezos steps down from Amazon.

Jeff Bezos, the world's richest man, stepped down as Amazon CEO on last Monday (July 5, 2021). Bezos chose July 5 as it was exactly 27 years ago on that date in 1994 when he founded Amazon.  However, the 57-year old, won't be going far from Amazon and will be the exe…

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India captain Mithali Raj became the highest run-getter in women's cricket.

India captain Mithali Raj became the highest run-getter in women's cricket across formats, overtaking former England skipper Charlotte Edwards. Mithali became the world's most prolific batter in women's internationals, overtaking Edwards' 10,273 runs. Suzie …

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Egypt Inaugurates Its Largest Naval Base to Maintain Maritime Security.

Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi inaugurated the ‘July 3 Naval Base’ located in Gargoub area in Egypt’s northwest coast. The July 3 Naval Base is regarded as Egypt’s largest naval base and stretches over 10 million square meters, overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. Accor…

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Max Verstappen wins Formula 1's Austrian Grand Prix 2021.

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen won the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring, the ninth race of the 2021 Formula 1 World Championship season.  Verstappen won the race ahead of Mercedes-AMG's Valtteri Bottas and McLaren's Lando Norris. Lewis Hamilton - Bottas' teamm…

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Former Sri Lanka Cricket performance analyst Sanath Jayasundara banned for corruption.

The anti-corruption tribunal of the ICC has banned Sanath Jayasundara, a former Sri Lanka Cricket performance analyst, from all cricket for seven years after he was found guilty of breaching the ICC anti-corruption code. In January 2019, Jayasundara had attempted to bribe Sr…

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