File- Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa hailed strong relations with Egypt in a meeting with President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on Thursday in Cairo - Courtesy of the Egyptian PresidencyCAIRO - 16 September 2021: Bahraini King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa will pay Egypt a visit on Thursday, at President Abdel Fattah El Sisi’s invitation, an invitation from President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, Bahraini news agency (BNA) reported the Royal Court announced. President Sisi and King Khalifa will discuss the robust ties between the two countries and the latest regional and Arab developments, the Court said. On August 7, 2021, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry paid an official visit to Manama, to convey a letter from President Sisi to King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. In May 2020, President Abdel Fatah al Sisi discussed the latest updates regarding Coronavirus, COVID19 pandemic with King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa during a phone call.

The United States and its allies are looking for ways to push back against China’s growing power and influence, particularly its military buildup, pressure on Taiwan and deployments in the contested South China Sea. Morrison said the submarines would be built in the city of Adelaide and Australia would meet all of its nuclear non-proliferation obligations. ADVANCED SYSTEMSJohnson said the pact, dubbed AUKUS, was not meant to be adversarial towards anyone and it would reduce the costs of Britain’s next generation of nuclear submarines. Singapore said it had long had relations with Australia, Britain and the United States and hoped their grouping would contribute to peace and stability. They said that since Australia does not have any nuclear infrastructure, it would require a sustained effort over years.

AFP - Leon Goretzka has penned a new deal to stay at Bayern Munich until 2026, it was announced Thurdsday, following on from his Germany team-mate Joshua Kimmich who has also committed to the defending Bundesliga champions. Goretzka was out of contract at the end of the season, but the midfield enforcer has committed to another five years, just weeks after national team-mate Kimmich extended his Bayern deal until 2025. Since joining Bayern from Schalke three years ago, Goretzka, 26, has forged a midfield partnership with Kimmich for Germany and Bayern, winning three back-to-back Bundesliga titles and the Champions League in 2020. Goretzka has scored 25 goals in 118 games for Bayern and wants more success with Munich, who are chasing a tenth consecutive Bundesliga title. The resigning of Kimmich and Goretzka means Bayern have locked in most of the stars for the coming seasons.

GENEVA (AP) — The head of the United Nations called Thursday for “immediate, rapid and large-scale” cuts in greenhouse gas emissions to curb global warming and avert climate disaster. Ahead of the annual UN General Assembly meeting next week, Antonio Guterres warned governments that climate change is proceeding faster than predicted and fossil fuel emissions have already bounced back from a pandemic dip. “Unless there are immediate, rapid and large-scale reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, we will be unable to limit global heating to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 Fahrenheit),” said Guterres. “Even with ambitious action to slow greenhouse gas emissions, sea levels will continue to rise and threaten low-lying islands and coastal populations throughout the world,” the authors wrote. ___Read more of AP’s climate coverage at http://www.apnews.com/Climate___On Twitter, follow Seth Borenstein at @borenbears, Frank Jordans at @wirereporter and Jamey Keaten at @jameykeaten

Can kids be harmed wearing masks to protect against COVID? No, there is no scientific evidence showing masks cause harm to kids’ health despite baseless claims suggesting otherwise. Some argue that young children miss important visual and social cues that enhance learning and development when their classmates and teachers are wearing masks. There’s strong evidence masking children in schools can reduce COVID-19 transmission to other children and adults. To avoid skin irritation, doctors suggest washing masks regularly, making sure they fit properly and picking masks made with soft, breathable fabric.

Sept 16 (Reuters) – The Taliban’s abrupt return to power has left hundreds of Afghan diplomats overseas in limbo: running out of money to keep missions operating, fearful for families back home and desperate to secure refuge abroad. One senior Afghan diplomat estimated there were around 3,000 people either working in the country’s embassies or directly dependent on them. But these calls for continuity do not reflect the chaos on the ground, embassy staff said. I am not being paid now,” a source at the Afghan embassy in Canada’s capital Ottawa said. “It’s very clear that not a single Afghan diplomat posted overseas wants to go back,” said a senior Afghan diplomat in Japan.

In a further sign that the hard-liners had prevailed, the white Taliban flag was raised over the presidential palace, replacing the Afghan national flag. On Tuesday, the Taliban foreign minister, Amir Khan Mutaqi, dismissed such reports as “propaganda.”Baradar had been noticeably absent from key functions. Another Taliban figure said Baradar was visiting family he had not seen in 20 years of war. Analysts say the friction may not amount to a serious threat to the Taliban — for now. “Still, the Taliban will be under a lot of pressure as it tries to consolidate its power, gain legitimacy, and address major policy challenges.

The company gave an extra dose to 306 people at that point and recorded levels of virus-fighting antibodies threefold higher than after the earlier shots. Earlier this week, two top FDA vaccine regulators joined a group of international scientists in rejecting boosters now for otherwise healthy individuals, citing the strong continuing protection against severe disease. The U.S. already offers an extra dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines to people with severely weakened immune systems. Moderna also has asked FDA to allow a booster dose of its vaccine, and on Wednesday posted its own study of waning immunity. It’s not clear how soon FDA will consider a Moderna booster, or one for people who received the single-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

(CNN Business) – Apple’s new iPhone 13 and 13 Pro lineup features all of the predictable upgrades: faster performance, longer lasting battery life, better screen and new colors. Apple (AAPL) kept its iPhone prices mostly in line with last year’s models, despite rumors they’d be priced higher than ever because of current issues with the chip supply chain. AT&T (T), for example, is offering up to $1,000 toward a new iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max after a trade-in, while Verizon (VZ) is touting as much as $800 off any new iPhone, essentially paying for the cost of a 128 GB iPhone 13. More than that, he said Apple is focused on boosting revenue from the many premium services built around the iPhone, such as iCloud storage, Apple Music and Fitness+. ‘Good, better, best’When Steve Jobs unveiled the iPhone in 2007, there was one device and one entry price point for users.

This year has seen Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex take part in a groundbreaking interview with Oprah Winfrey and welcome their second child into the world, all while scandals have swirled around the royal family they left behind. Now, they can add another major moment to their 2021 diary — as Time has named them ‘icons’ in its annual list of the world’s 100 most influential people. The couple appears on one of the multiple covers of Time’s 100 issue, while others who grace the magazine’s front page include Simone Biles, Billie Eilish and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala — the first African woman to lead the World Trade Organization. “Springing into action is not the easy choice for a young duke and duchess who have been blessed through birth and talent, and burned by fame,” Andrés also wrote. As usual, the list also includes leaders around the globe who have had a significant impact in the past nine months — from US President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Abdul Ghani Baradar, the senior deputy leader of the Taliban in Afghanistan.

Dr. Rania A. Al-Mashat, Minister of International Cooperation, and H.E. The Minister added that the ongoing portfolio of the Ministry International cooperation includes projects worth $365 million to achieve SDG 13: Climate Action. Egypt, hence, put the National Council on Climate Change under the guidance of H.E. Dr. Mostafa Madbouly, Egypt’s Prime Minister, where line ministries and sectors, whether generating or affected by greenhouse emissions, will participate to develop policies and procedures that take into account the effects of climate change. Soliman further affirmed the WBG’s keenness to support the Egyptian government's efforts to address the repercussions of climate change, as well as crafting the policies that shall enhance these efforts.

Johnson has made tackling regional inequality a priority for his government but the COVID-19 pandemic has eclipsed action on the promises he made in 2019, when he won the biggest Conservative Party parliamentary majority since Margaret Thatcher. Gavin Williamson was the first to be sacked, as education minister, after being criticised for his handling of schools during the pandemic. A source in Johnson’s office said he would be appointing ministers “with a focus on uniting and levelling up the whole country”. Jenrick had been under fire over his role in a development proposed by a Conservative Party donor. Rumours of a reshuffle, and who might be on their way up or on their way out, have been swirling for weeks.

The Egyptian Cabinet approved a draft Presidential decision regarding the Canadian Universities Foundation in Egypt to host a branch of Ryerson University in Egypt. Egypt’s Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Khalid Abdel Ghafar back in 2019 received a delegate of the Canadian University ‘Ryerson’, to discuss establishing a branch within Egypt. According to Ghafar, establishing and organizing branches of foreign universities in Egypt also offers several benefits to the foreign universities. The Dean of Faculty of Engineering and Architecture at University of Ryerson said that the university’s engineering programs ranks among the top 250 programs worldwide. In February 2019, Egypt’s government announced the construction of eight international universities in the New Administrative Capital by 2020 during a visit to the University of Canada in Egypt.

The head of the Evangelical community in Egypt, Andre Zaki on Wednesday will inaugurate the Evangelical Church in Kom al-Akhdar Maghagha, Minya governorate following the completion of its renovation. This church was established in 1889 and is one of the oldest churches affiliated with the Evangelical community in Egypt. The opening will be in the presence of leaders of the Evangelical community, members of the Senate and House of Representatives, and religious and leaders in Minya Governorate. Zaki will open, on Thursday, the Evangelical Church in al-Nasiriyah, Assiut Governorate, after its reconstruction, in the presence of Assiut Governor Essam Saad.

“Parents or elderly relatives have become an extra strain in this pandemic so although it goes against our culture, many people are finding old people’s homes as the only option,” Gavi said. Zimbabwe’s care homes have experienced a 60 percent increase in admissions since the COVID-19 pandemic erupted in March 2020, and most of the country’s more than 170 facilities for older people are full, she said. “When they are forced into old people’s homes, many go into depression, into dementia … they are confused that their children or relatives have abandoned them,” said Daniel Francis, the administrator at Melfort Old People’s home. The care homes that don’t charge their residents, and are funded by charities and churches, are under strain. Despite the disappointment of not being with family, Bhatare at the Melfort Old People’s home is adjusting to his new reality.