TRUMP ADAMANT COVID CAME FROM WUHAN LAB

The US has said that China mishandled the situation after the coronavirus

outbreak in its Wuhan city.

But it refrained from giving a definitive answer on retaliatory measures

against Beijing.

Led by the United States, several countries, including Germany, Britain and

Australian, are blaming China for the spread of coronavirus across the

globe.

President Donald Trump had hinted at using tariff as a tool to punish China

for mishandling the virus outbreak.

On Thursday, President Donald Trump had hinted at using tariff as a tool to

punish China for mishandling the virus outbreak and the next day the markets

went down.

White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany said the US continues to have

very limited and dubious data from China and the current assessments

indicated that Trump's statement about Wuhan, is consistent with what some

analysts believe is the epicenter of where the virus began.

"I won't get ahead of any announcements from the President, but I will echo

the President's displeasure with China. It's no secret that China mishandled

this situation," McEnany told reporters.

"Just a few examples for you; they did not share the genetic sequence until

a professor in Shanghai did so on his own. The very next day China shut down

his lab for quote rectification. They slow-walked information on human to

human transmission alongside the World Health Organization and didn't let US

investigators in at a very important time," she said.

"So, we take displeasure with China's actions, but I certainly won't get out

of the president with those announcements. Again, when it comes to

retaliatory measures, I will not get ahead of the president on that,"

McEnany asserted.

KIM JONG-UN APPEARS IN PUBLIC AMID HEALTH RUMORS

North Korean state media published pictures Saturday of leader Kim Jong Un

making his first public appearance in nearly three weeks, following intense

speculation that he was seriously ill or possibly dead.

The images from the Rodong Sinmun newspaper showed Kim attending a ceremony

at a fertiliser factory on Friday in Sunchon, near the capital Pyongyang.

The pictures showed Kim Jong Un along with other senior officials including

his sister and close adviser Kim Yo Jong.

AFGHAN PRESIDENT ASHRAF GHANI, ABDULLAH REACH 'TENTATIVE DEAL'

A bitter feud between Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and his rival Abdullah

Abdullah appeared closer to resolution on Friday after Mr. Abdullah said the

two men had moved forward in talks. "We have made progress in negotiations &

reached tentative agreement on a range of principles. Work on details is

underway to finalize the agreement," Mr. Abdullah said on Twitter.

The dispute has proved a huge distraction for Afghanistan at a terrible

time, with the coronavirus crisis worsening daily and the Taliban stepping

up attacks despite a deal they signed with the U.S. in February.

"We hope to finalize the political agreement at the earliest so that we can

pay undivided attention to tackling coronavirus (COVID-19)pandemic, ensuring

a just, dignified & lasting peace, & confronting the security & economic

challenges in a spirit of national unity & solidarity," Mr. Abdullah

tweeted. Mr. Ghani's office did not immediately comment.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, an Afghan official said Mr. Abdullah has

made a multi-pronged proposal to Mr. Ghani. The offer would see Mr. Abdullah

appointed to lead eventual peace talks with the Taliban while also getting a

50-% share of the government including several high-ranking positions for

his allies. Mr. Abdullah would also gain the title of "executive Prime

Minister", the official said, stressing that Mr. Ghani has not accepted the

proposal.

On Thursday, Mr. Ghani's second Vice-President, Sarwar Danish, confirmed

that Mr. Abdullah would be leading the peace council.

TRUDEAU ANNOUNCES BAN ON 1,500 KINDS OF ASSAULT WEAPONS

Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has introduced a long-promised ban on

assault-style weapons following the country's worst gun massacre in April.

New rules would make it illegal to sell, transport, import or use 1,500

varieties of assault weapons.

The ban is effective immediately but there will be a two-year amnesty period

for law-abiding gun owners to comply.

Mr Trudeau also said he would introduce legislation, which has yet to pass,

to offer a buy-back programme.

Unlike the US, gun ownership is not enshrined in Canada's constitution, but

gun ownership is still popular, especially in rural parts of the country.

Mr Trudeau made a point of saying that most gun owners are law-abiding

citizens, but argued that assault-weapons serve no beneficial purpose.

"These weapons were designed for one purpose and one purpose only - only to

kill the largest amount of people in the shortest amount of time," he said

in a press conference on Friday.

NATO WITHHOLDS KEY INFORMATION ON TALIBAN ATTACKS: US WATCHDOG

NATO's US-led mission in Afghanistan is withholding key information about

Taliban attacks, a US government watchdog said Friday, potentially making

insights into the war harder just as the Pentagon slashes its troop

presence.

The Resolute Support (RS) mission previously disclosed data on

"enemy-initiated attacks", one of the few remaining public metrics of the

conflict and the strength of the Taliban and other insurgent groups.

In its quarterly report released Friday, the office of the Special Inspector

General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) said RS had stopped providing

numbers.

Instead, RS gave only a short statement noting the Taliban had stepped up

attacks in March, immediately after the signing of a US-Taliban deal that

was supposed to pave the way to peace talks.

"Between March 1 and 31, the Taliban refrained from attacks against

coalition forces; however they increased attacks against (Afghan forces) to

levels above seasonal norms," RS said, according to the report.

Under the deal, US and other foreign forces will quit Afghanistan next year

if the Taliban start peace talks with Kabul and stick to various security

commitments.

In the week ahead of the February 29 deal signing in Doha, violence

plummeted during a partial truce and US officials hoped attacks would stay

low.

Instead, the Taliban immediately resumed assaults on Afghan forces.

During the deal negotiations, the Taliban had agreed to stop hitting foreign

troops, but there was no such prohibition on targeting Afghan forces.

RS told SIGAR that it chose to restrict data because enemy attacks were now

a "critical part" of discussions "regarding ongoing political negotiations

between the US and the Taliban".

SIGAR noted the Pentagon said it might release the information in the

future.

A Pentagon spokesman justified the decision to withhold data, citing ongoing

talks.

"So the decision was that we're working toward a better solution and a

better place for Afghanistan and that the sharing of that information would

not... move the ball forward," the spokesman, Jonathan Hoffman, told

reporters.

5G SIGNAL NOW AVAILABLE ON MOUNT EVEREST PEAK

Mountaineers climbing the Mount Everest from the Chinese side will now be

able to enjoy 5G speed.

The world's highest-altitude base station began its operation in the remote

Himalayan region of Tibet.

According to a media report on Friday, it has been revealed that the base

station, built at an altitude of 6,500 metres, became operational on

Thursday.

Chinese telecom giant China Mobile informed that it is located at the

advance base camp of Mount Everest

"The base station, along with another two that were previously built at

altitudes of 5,300 metres and 5,800 metres respectively, realises the full

coverage of 5G signal of Mount Everest on the north ridge as well as the

summit," The Hindu reported.

Officials have further informed that the cost of building five 5G stations

could reach to USD 1.42 million.

It is expected that these 5G stations would help mountaineers from across

the world communicate better.

It is also expected that the 5G services would prove helpful for rescuing

workers and researchers.

SRI LANKAN PRESIDENT GOTABAYA RAJAPAKSA RULES OUT RECONVENING PARLIAMENT

Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on Friday ruled out reconvening the

dissolved Parliament using his discretionary powers.

In a letter signed by his secretary - released to the media on Friday - the

President said the Opposition parties "do not believe in holding elections

and instead engage in a narrow political agenda at a crucial time when the

government is striving to safeguard public health, social security and

welfare".

The letter comes days after leaders of major political parties in Opposition

wrote to President Rajapaksa, urging him to reconvene Parliament that he

dissolved on March 2, using his discretionary powers, to enhance the

country's coronavirus (COVID-19) response by passing "necessary laws".

Further, they pledged "responsible cooperation", assuring the President that

they would not draw salaries or thwart any "legitimate actions" of the

government.

However, President Rajapaksa said the requirement to abide by Article 70 (7)

of Sri Lanka's Constitution didn't arise. He was referring to the article

evoked by the Opposition that says that if "the President is satisfied that

an emergency has arisen of such a nature that an earlier meeting of

Parliament is necessary", he may summon the dissolved legislature by

proclamation.

Sri Lanka's Election Commission postponed the general elections - earlier

scheduled for April 25 - to June 20 in the wake of COVID-19, but many

Opposition parties have objected to the new date, citing likely public

health risks. Some have also pointed to the risk of an "imminent

constitutional crisis" posed by the new poll date, as the Constitution

requires Parliament to be summoned not later than three months after the

proclamation dissolving the House [March 2]. President Rajapaksa has earlier

said the poll date was the prerogative of the Election Commission.

JOE BIDEN DENIES SEXUALLY ASSAULTING STAFF ASSISTANT TARA READE

US Democratic candidate Joe Biden has flatly denied sexually assaulting a

former staff assistant, Tara Reade, nearly 30 years ago.

"I'm saying unequivocally: it never, never happened," he said of the

allegations during a TV interview on Friday.

He asked for a search of the Senate archives for any record of a complaint

Ms Reade allegedly filed at the time.

Ms Reade made a criminal complaint to police last month.

She said she was a victim of sexual assault without naming Mr Biden. The

police complaint, she said, was filed "for safety reasons only" as the

statute of limitations for her claim had expired.

Mr Biden is running against Republican President Donald Trump, who has been

accused of sexual misconduct by some 25 women.

The Democrat put out his statement before speaking on Morning Joe, a show on

US cable channel MSNBC.

Ms Reade says records of Mr Biden's 36-year career as a US senator will

contain evidence that she complained to her superiors about him.

The records are being held at the University of Delaware, which has said it

will not release any papers until two years after Mr Biden leaves public

life.

It appears there were no witnesses to the alleged assault but three people

have backed Ms Reade's account.