Live: Congress expels Haryana MLA for cross-voting in Rajya Sabha poll

Live news updates: The latest on India news, the coronavirus, the war in Ukraine and other headlines.

10:45 AM

Norway Chess: Anand beats Tari in final round; settles for third place Stavanger

Former world champion Viswanathan Anand scored a win over Aryan Tari in the ninth and final round to finish third in the Norway Chess tournament which was won by world number one Magnus Carlsen.

 

The 52-year-old Indian chess legend won the Armageddon encounter against Tari after the classical match finished in a 22-move draw.

 

Anand was made to work hard by Tari in the sudden death tie-break as he needed 87 moves to secure the victory early on Saturday.

 

He finished with 14.5 points to sign off at the third place behind Carlsen (16.5 points) and Azerbaijan's Shakhriyar Mamedyarov (15.5).

10:28 AM

India records 8,329 new COVID-19 cases, 10 fatalities

A single-day rise of over 8,000 fresh COVID-19 cases was recorded in the country after 103 days, pushing India's infection tally to 43,213,435, while the count of active cases jumped to 40,370, according to Union Health Ministry data on Saturday.

 

A total of 8,329 new coronavirus cases were reported in a span of 24 hours, while the death toll due to the disease has climbed to 524,757, with 10 fatalities being recorded, the data updated at 8 am showed.

 

The active cases now comprise 0.09 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate was recorded at 98.69 per cent, the ministry said.

 

10:02 AM

Shanghai kicks off new round of mass COVID testing, Beijing cases jump

China's commercial hub of Shanghai began a round of mass COVID-19 testing for nearly all of its 25 million residents on Saturday as authorities seek to contain an outbreak tied to a popular beauty salon, while Beijing reported a spike in cases.

 

Authorities have ordered PCR testing for all residents in 15 of Shanghai's 16 districts this weekend, with five districts barring residents from leaving their homes during the testing period.

 

The new tests come just 10 days after the city lifted a gruelling two-month lockdown aimed at eliminating the community spread of COVID-19. On Saturday, Shanghai reported seven new local symptomatic cases for the previous day, of which six were detected outside of quarantined areas.

 

9:51 AM

Ukraine pleads for more weapons, cholera spreads in Mariupol

Ukraine sought more help from the West on Friday, pleading for faster deliveries of weapons to hold off better-armed Russian forces and for humanitarian support to combat deadly diseases.

 

In Sievierodonetsk, the small city that has become the focus of Russia's advance in eastern Ukraine and one of the bloodiest flashpoints in a war well into its fourth month, further heavy fighting was reported.

 

To the south, the mayor of Mariupol - reduced to ruins by a Russian siege – said sanitation systems were broken and corpses were rotting in the streets.

9:36 AM

19th Shangri-La Dialogue kicks off in S'pore after 2-yr Covid hiatus

The 19th Shangri-La Dialogue, hosted by International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), opened in Singapore after a two-year Covid-19 pandemic induced hiatus.

 

The Shangri-La Dialogue is Asia's premier defence summit. It's a unique meeting where ministers debate the region's most pressing security challenges, engage in important bilateral talks and come up with fresh approaches together.

 

Since its launch in 2002 by the British think tank IISS with the support of the Singaporean government, the Shangri-La Dialogue, officially known as the Asia Security Summit, has been held annually except for 2020 and 2021, reports Xinhua news agency.

9:24 AM

Australia reaches settlement with France over scrapped submarine deal

Australia's new Labor-led government has reached a 555 million euro($583.58 million)settlement over a controversial decision last year to scrap the French submarine deal, a move Canberra hopes will help repair the rift between the two countries.

 

Australia last year cancelled a multi-billion-dollar order for submarines with French military shipyard Naval Group and opted instead for an alternative deal with the United States and Britain.

 

The move enraged Paris and triggered an unprecedented diplomatic crisis. It has also riled China, the major rising power in the Indo-Pacific region.

 

9:22 AM

India logs 8,329 fresh Coronavirus cases, 10 deaths in 24 hrs

Summary of MoHFW data (June 11)

 

Active cases: 40,370 (Net increase: 4,103)

Deaths: 524,757 (Net increase: 10)

Cured: 42,648,308 (Net increase: 4,216)

Total cases: 43,213,435 (Net increase:  8,329)

Total vaccination: 1,949,271,111 (Increase over previous day: 1,508,406)

 

9:17 AM

2 killed, many injured in violent protests in Ranchi over comments on Prophet

2 killed, many including police personnel injured in violent protests in Ranchi over comments on Prophet Mohammad: Official. 

 

9:07 AM

Monkeypox only spreads through air during 'sustained' face-to-face contact: CDC

Amid the rising cases of monkeypox, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has revealed that it can spread through the air but only through 'sustained' face-to-face contact with an infected person.

In a briefing on Friday, CDC chief Rochelle Walensky said monkeypox was being passed on through physical contact with symptomatic patients and by touching their clothing and bedding, reports the Daily Mail.

But attempting to clear up whether face masks are needed to avoid catching the rash-causing virus, the epidemiologist explained the rash-causing virus would not 'linger in the air' like Covid.

8:49 AM

China becoming more 'coercive and aggressive': US defence chief

The United States will do its part to manage tensions with China and prevent conflict even though Beijing is becoming increasingly aggressive in the Asian region, including near Taiwan, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Saturday.

 

Relations between China and the United States have been tense in recent months, with the world's two largest economies clashing over everything from Taiwan and China's human rights record to its military activity in the South China Sea.

 

8:48 AM

Early morning earthquake jolts Kathmandu

A 4.7-magnitude earthquake shook Kathmandu in the early hours of Saturday, jolting many out of their sleep and forcing them to run outside.

 

The earthquake was recorded by the National Seismological Centre at 2.36 am, with the epicentre being in Bhaktapur district, 15 km east of the capital city.

 

The earthquake was felt in and around the Kathmandu valley. However, no damage to life or property was reported immediately after the incident.

 

8:48 AM

Fire at hospital in Delhi's Rohini, patient feared dead

One patient is feared to have died after a fire broke out at the intensive care unit (ICU) of a hospital in Delhi's Rohini area on Saturday morning, officials said.

 

According to the fire officials, the information regarding the fire on the third floor of Brahm Shakti Hospital, Pooth Khurd, was received at 5 am.

 

A total of nine fire tenders were rushed to the spot to douse the flames. All have been safely rescued except one patient who was on a ventilator support and is suspected to have died, Delhi Fire Services (DFS) Director Atul Garg said.

8:25 AM

Prophet row: Internet services suspended in Ranchi in wake of protests

All internet services were temporarily suspended in Ranchi till 6 am on Saturday i.e June 11, in wake of protests in the city on Friday over controversial remarks on Prophet Muhammad.

 

Till late evening, six injured were brought to Sadar Hospital. One of them had sustained a bullet injury and he was referred to RIMS hospital. The rest of the injured are being treated at Sadar Hospital, said Dr Vinod Kumar, Civil Surgeon, Ranchi.

 

Senior Superintendent of Police, Superintendent of Police (SP) City, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) City, Daily Market Police Station Incharge and some other Police personnel who were controlling the situation during the protests, sustained injuries.

8:25 AM

Zelenskyy ignored invasion warnings, says Biden

President Joe Biden, speaking to donors at a Democratic fundraiser here, said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy “didn't want to hear it” when U.S. intelligence gathered information that Russia was preparing to invade.

 

The remarks came as Biden was talking about his work to rally and solidify support for Ukraine as the war continues into its fourth month.

 

“Nothing like this has happened since World War II. I know a lot of people thought I was maybe exaggerating. But I knew we had data to sustain he” — meaning Russian President Vladimir Putin — “was going to go in, off the border.” “There was no doubt,” Biden said. “And Zelenskyy didn't want to hear it.”

 

8:21 AM

Russia holds drills in Baltic Sea as NATO exercises in same region

Russian warships are conducting drills in the Baltic Sea, the Russian Defense Ministry said Friday as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is holding exercises in the same region.

 

About 60 surface warships, boats and supply vessels, about 45 aircraft and helicopters, and some 10,000 soldiers are involved in the massive exercises, the ministry said in a statement.

 

The sailors will practice searching ships of the mock enemy and carry out measures for anti-air, anti-ship and anti-submarine defence.