Cases rise, pressure grows on Modi to impose strict lockdown

NEW DELHI (AP) — With coronavirus cases still surging to record levels, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is facing growing pressure to impose a harsh nationwide lockdown amid a debate whether restrictions imposed by individual states are enough. Many medical experts, opposition leaders and some of the Supreme Court judges have suggested the lockdown seems to be the only option with the virus raging in cities and towns, where hospitals are forced to turn patients away while relatives scramble to find oxygen. Crematoriums and burial grounds are struggling to handle the dead. On Friday, India recorded a new record of 414,188 confirmed cases in the past 24 hours, Its tally has risen to more than 21.4 million since the pandemic began with faint hopes of the curve going down quickly.

Maldives leader: Blast that hurt Nasheed attacked democracy

MALE, Maldives (AP) — The Maldives president said Friday an explosion that wounded former leader Mohamed Nasheed was an attack on the country’s democracy and economy and said Australian police would assist the investigation. Nasheed, 53, was injured in the blast Thursday night outside his home and was being treated in a hospital in the capital, Male, police said. Home Minister Imran Abdulla told a local television that Nasheed’s injuries were not life-threatening. He is the current Parliament speaker and was the Maldives’ first democratically elected president, serving from 2008 to 2012. President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih said in a televised speech Friday that Australian Federal Police investigators will arrive in the Indian Ocean archipelago nation on Saturday.

Packed trains, drinking: Japanese impatient over virus steps

TOKYO (AP) — Trains packed with commuters returning to work after a weeklong national holiday. Frustrated young people drinking in the streets because bars are closed. Protests planned over a possible visit by the Olympics chief. As the coronavirus spreads in Japan ahead of the Tokyo Olympics starting in 11 weeks, one of the world’s least vaccinated nations is showing signs of strain, both societal and political. The government — desperate to show a worried public it is in control of virus efforts even as it pushes a massive sporting event that a growing number of Japanese oppose hosting in a pandemic — is set Friday to expand and extend a state of emergency in Tokyo and other areas through May 31.

Indonesia’s Sinabung spews column of volcanic ash into sky

MEDAN, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesia’s rumbling Mount Sinabung erupted Friday, spewing a thick column of volcanic ash 2.8 kilometers (1.7 miles) into the sky. Villages near the volcano in North Sumatra province have been relocated after past eruptions, and there were no further evacuations or casualties from the new blast. People have been advised to stay 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) from the crater’s mouth and to be aware of ashfall and avalanches of volcanic debris. Activity at the volcano was increasing, with at least 15 smaller eruptions recorded in the past week, said Armen Putra, an official at the Sinabung monitoring post.

Flash mobs in Myanmar’s biggest city avoid deadly response

BANGKOK (AP) — A flash mob of mostly young people in Myanmar’s biggest city staged a brief protest march Thursday against military rule, the latest in a series of actions aimed at reducing the chances of a deadly response by the authorities. In the five-minute protest in Yangon, about 70 marchers chanted slogans in support of the civil disobedience movement that opposes February’s army coup that ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. They then scattered into the downtown crowds. Protests also took place in other cities and towns including Mandalay, the country’s second biggest city, where Buddhist monks marched, and Dawei in the southeast, where the demonstrators included engineers, teachers, university students and members of LGBT groups.

Thai court grants bail to pro-democracy protest leader

BANGKOK (AP) — A court in Thailand on Thursday allowed the release on bail of one of the top leaders of the country’s pro-democracy movement who is awaiting trial on charges of defaming the monarchy. Panusaya “Rung” Sitthijirawattanakul was released on 200,000 baht ($6,400) bail on the condition that she must wear an electronic monitoring bracelet. She also is prohibited from joining any activities that defame the monarchy or leaving the country without permission, and must appear at regular appointments with the court. She was charged with violating the lese majeste law after leading several protest rallies last year at which she gave speeches proposing reform of the country’s monarchy.

Personal ties: Harris’ family in India grapples with COVID

WASHINGTON (AP) — G. Balachandran turned 80 this spring — a milestone of a birthday in India, where he lives. If not for the coronavirus pandemic, he would have been surrounded by family members who gathered to celebrate with him. But with the virus ravaging his homeland, Balachandran had to settle for congratulatory phone calls. Including one from his rather famous niece: Vice President Kamala Harris. “Unfortunately, because of the COVID, I cannot have such an elaborate function,” the retired academic said in a Zoom interview Thursday from his home in New Delhi. Harris’ uncle says he spoke with the vice president and her husband, Doug Emhoff, for quite a while.

More support easing vaccine patent rules, but hurdles remain

GENEVA (AP) — Several world leaders Thursday praised the U.S. call to remove patent protections on COVID-19 vaccines to help poor countries obtain shots. But the proposal faces a multitude of hurdles, including resistance from the pharmaceutical industry. Nor is it clear what effect such a step might have on the campaign to vanquish the outbreak. Activists and humanitarian institutions cheered after the U.S. reversed course Wednesday and called for a waiver of intellectual property protections on the vaccine. The decision ultimately is up to the 164-member World Trade Organization, and if just one country votes against a waiver, the proposal will fail.

Ramadan in China: Faithful dwindle under limits on religion

KASHGAR, China (AP) — Tursunjan Mamat, a practicing Muslim in western China’s Xinjiang region, said he’s fasting for Ramadan but his daughters, ages 8 and 10, are not. Religious activity including fasting is not permitted for minors, he explained. The 32-year-old ethnic Uyghur wasn’t complaining, at least not to a group of foreign journalists brought to his home outside the city of Aksu by government officials, who listened in on his responses. It seemed he was giving a matter-of-fact description of how religion is practiced under rules set by China’s Communist Party. “My children know who our holy creator is, but I don’t give them detailed religious knowledge,” he said, speaking through a translator.

China rejects G-7 criticism on human rights

BEIJING (AP) — China’s government on Thursday rejected criticism of its human rights and economic record by foreign ministers of the Group of Seven major economies and accused them of meddling in its affairs. The Foreign Ministry also rejected an appeal by the G-7 diplomats for Taiwan, the island democracy Beijing claims as part of its territory, to be allowed to participate in the World Health Organization. The statement Wednesday by G-7 diplomats in London “made groundless accusations” said a Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Wang Wenbin. He accused them of “blatantly meddling” in China’s affairs. “China strongly condemns it,” Wang said at a press briefing.