Reuters World News Summary
Following is a summary of current world news briefs.
Alaska newspaper wins public service Pulitzer Prize; Reuters wins for photography
The Anchorage Daily News and ProPublica won the Pulitzer Prize for public service journalism on Monday for revealing one-third of Alaska's villages had no police protection, while the photography staff of Reuters won the breaking news photography award for documenting last year's violent protests in Hong Kong. The Courier-Journal in Louisville, Kentucky, took home the breaking news honor for its coverage of hundreds of last-minute pardons issued by former Governor Matt Bevin. The prize for investigative reporting went to the New York Times' Brian Rosenthal, who uncovered how thousands of New York City's taxi drivers had their lives ruined by predatory lending.
Germany to reopen all shops, allow soccer matches: sources
Germany's state premiers will agree on measures to further ease coronavirus restrictions in a teleconference with Chancellor Angela Merkel scheduled for Wednesday, two people familiar with the preparations told Reuters on Monday. The state premiers are expected to give the green light for large shops to reopen, probably from May 11, the sources said.
Exclusive: Internal Chinese report warns Beijing faces Tiananmen-like global backlash over virus
An internal Chinese report warns that Beijing faces a rising wave of hostility in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak that could tip relations with the United States into confrontation, people familiar with the paper told Reuters. The report, presented early last month by the Ministry of State Security to top Beijing leaders including President Xi Jinping, concluded that global anti-China sentiment is at its highest since the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown, the sources said.
Global coronavirus deaths exceed quarter of a million: Reuters tally
Global coronavirus deaths reached 250,000 on Monday after recorded infections topped 3.5 million, a Reuters tally of official government data showed, although the rate of fatalities has slowed. North America and European countries accounted for most of the new deaths and cases reported in recent days, but numbers were rising from smaller bases in Latin America, Africa and Russia.
World leaders pledge $8 billion to fight COVID-19 but U.S. steers clear
World leaders and organizations pledged $8 billion to research, manufacture and distribute a possible vaccine and treatments for COVID-19 on Monday, but the United States refused to contribute to the global effort. Organizers included the European Union and non-EU countries Britain, Norway and Saudi Arabia. Leaders from Japan, Canada, South Africa and dozens of other countries joined the virtual event, while China, where the virus is believed to have originated, was only represented by its ambassador to the European Union.
Labour opposition will support any lockdown extension, says UK's Starmer
Britain's opposition Labour leader Keir Starmer said on Monday he would support any extension of social distancing measures, calling for a "national consensus" on the next phase of the country's response to the coronavirus outbreak. Prime Minister Boris Johnson will review the measures that have all but shuttered Britain's economy on May 7 to judge whether any can be eased, a decision which he says will be guided by the government's desire to protect public health.
Masked and standing apart, the world tiptoes out of lockdown
Italy and the United States were among a slew of countries tentatively easing coronavirus lockdowns on Monday to revive economies as global deaths surpassed a quarter of a million. World leaders and organizations pledged $8 billion to fund a possible vaccine and treatments, many hoping explicitly to ensure that no country on Earth would be left out, but the United States did not contribute.
Canadian province of Quebec begins gradual reopening, except for city of Montreal
The province of Quebec, worst hit in Canada by the coronavirus, began gradually reopening its economy on Monday but pushed back plans for a restart in the city of Montreal, citing health concerns. Quebec is allowing stores with an outside entrance for customers to serve shoppers, but that excludes Montreal, Canada's second-largest city.
U.S. should keep Congress informed about nuclear talks with Saudis: GAO
The U.S. Departments of State and Energy should commit to regular briefings to relevant committees in Congress on talks about nuclear power cooperation with Saudi Arabia, a congressional watchdog said in a report on Monday. The Government Accountability Office, or GAO, report said Congress should consider amending the 1954 Atomic Energy Act, or AEA, to require the briefings for the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations about negotiations on nuclear power sharing.
Congress Republicans accuse China of seeking to indoctrinate U.S. students
A group of U.S. House of Representatives Republicans released a letter on Monday charging China with seeking to indoctrinate American students, the latest anti-China statement from congressional allies of President Donald Trump. The ranking Republicans on seven House committees sent a letter to Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, asking for information and accusing China of providing funds to U.S. universities in an effort to spread Communist party propaganda and restrict research into COVID-19, the illness caused by the new coronavirus.
