Foreign schools in Kuwait resumed on campus learning yesterday after being closed to students since March 2020. All foreign-language schools were allowed to reopen for students on Sept 26, while public and private Arabic schools will reopen on Oct 3. Health protocols will be in place including a maximum capacity for any classroom of 20 students, with students sitting two meters apart and wearing masks.

Meanwhile, the education ministry said yesterday that the teaching and administrative staff at public schools have been complete across Kuwait with the high school staff resuming work for the schooling year 2021-2022 yesterday. The number of teachers at public schools, including the high school stage, topped 16,892, according to a statement from the Ministry of Education.

The figure includes 7,882 male teachers and 11,010 females. The staffers of the Capital Educational area is made up of 3,354 teachers, Hawally area 2,353, Farwaniyah 3,408, Al-Ahmadi 4,293, Al-Jahra 2,748 and Mubarak Al-Kabeer 2,203 the statement noted./KT

Ethiopia’s Guye Adola and Gotytom Gebreslase won the men’s and women’s titles respectively in the 2021 Berlin Marathon on Sunday.

Adola bagged the men's title in 2:05:45, while Bethwel Yegon of Kenya placed second with 2:06:14 and another Ethiopian athlete Kenenisa Bekele took the third spot in 2:06:47.

In the women's event, Gebreslase finished in the first place in 2:20:09, while Ethiopian athletes Hiwot Gebrekidan took the second spot in 2:21:23 and Helen Tola placed third in 2:23:05.

Berlin Marathon, part of the World Athletics platinum label road races, is a marathon event held annually on the streets of Berlin, Germany on the last weekend of September./BBC

A family picnic to celebrate Somali women has been marred by a "racist and Islamophobic" attack, according to its organiser.

Zahra Kosar tweeted that children were chased and terrorised while some parents were assaulted in St George Park, Bristol on Saturday afternoon.

She said they were all traumatised by what appeared to be a "racist and Islamophobic attack".

Police have said they are treating the incident as a suspected hate crime.

Ms Kosar, a former social worker and mental health coordinator with the Bristol Somali Resource Centre, said the event had been organised to celebrate progress made by Somali women in Bristol.

'Public order offences'

A spokesman for the police said they received a call at approximately 16.55 BST on Saturday to the park in the Redfield area of Bristol.

On attendance officers received reports of "minor assaults and public order offences".

The suspects had left the scene before they arrived, the force said.

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Bristol East neighbourhood Ch Insp Deepak Kenth said: "Initial enquiries suggest some of the people involved may have been known to each other and that this therefore was not a random incident.

"Nevertheless we are taking it very seriously and continue to treat it as a suspected hate crime at this time."

Increased high-visibility patrols will take place in the area in the comings days, he said.

Ch Insp Deepak Kenth also urged anyone with information to contact the force.

Thousands of Tunisians Sunday took out a rally in the capital Tunis to protest President Kais Saied’s move to expand powers.

This came days after Saied issued decrees, making amendments regarding legislative and executive powers of the president and abolishing the body established in 2014 to monitor the constitutionality of laws.

To show support, dozens of Saied's supporters also gathered on the Habib Bourguiba street in front of the opposition rally.

Police and security forces were deployed in the area and metal barriers were erected to avoid any clash between the two rallies.

Those protesting against the president’s decision demanded Saied take back his orders, while those backing the president demanded a presidential system in the country.

According to eyewitnesses, there were no prominent personalities or politicians among Saied's supporters' gathering, which drew less than 30 people.

On July 25, Saied ousted the government, suspended the parliament, and assumed executive authority. While he insists that his "exceptional measures" are meant to "save" the country, critics accuse him of orchestrating a coup.

Tunisia has been seen as the only country that succeeded in carrying out a democratic transition among the Arab countries which witnessed popular uprisings, toppling ruling regimes, including Egypt, Libya, and Yemen./agencies

A Muslim woman living in the Austrian capital Vienna was physically harmed as she was subjected to a racist attack for wearing hijab.

"This was truly upsetting for me, I did not really know how to react for it was the first time I found myself in such situation," Baraa Bolat said in an interview with Anadolu Agency.

Noting that the attack took place in a city bus, Bolat said: "A woman approached, and told me to go back to Turkey with prejudice as I was wearing hijab, even though I am not from Turkey."

Bolat went on to say that she ignored the racist attack and moved toward the front of the bus, however, the assailant did not leave her alone and continued with insulting and racist remarks.

"I ignored her until she spat on me, which, during the epidemic, who knows, maybe she was carrying the disease. I thereupon got off, she followed me and attacked my hijab, pulling it very hard. The pulling caused needle attached to my hijab under my chin to wound me. I yelled at her but she did not stop until I took out my mobile phone and started taking pictures (of her), she then crossed to other side of street," she said.

Bolat also shared the incident on social media.

"I thought I had to take a stance against this incident, and everyone should learn about it. Regardless of wearing hijab or not, skin color or ethnicity, nobody should go through an incident of this sort, and this should not be ignored in any way," she said.

Legal process initiated

Many people contacted Bolat following her post on social media, wishing her well and standing in solidarity, according to the Muslim woman, who said she filed a report to local police authorities and a legal process was launched.

She went on to say that the racist assailant was notorious for such acts and had previously targeted several others the same way.

"I am not the first person attacked, spat on by this person; many women wearing hijab were unfortunately been subjected to similar attacks by the same individual. So, she has to pay the price. If she has been psychologically disturbed, then she should be hospitalized or another solution must be found. It is unacceptable that the person is somehow outside and harms other people," she added.

In addition, she regretted to note that no other passenger on the bus opted to help her but instead stood as mere spectators, adding there should be more efforts for sake of awareness that would make people help others in need regardless of their different backgrounds./agencies

Pakistani security forces on Sunday claimed to have killed the suspected mastermind of a 2018 election rally bombing that killed over 150 people and injured hundreds in the southwestern Balochistan province.

The alleged terrorist Mumtaz, also known as Mota Pehalwan, was killed in a security operation in Mastung district, located 50 kilometers (31miles), miles from the provincial capital, Quetta, the deputy commissioner of the district, Ilyas Kubzai, told reporters.

Over 150 people were killed and more than 200 injured on July 13, 2018, in a suicide blast targeting the election rally of a local politician in Mastung.

The Daesh terror group, also known as ISIS, had claimed responsibility for the attack.

Over the course of the last decade, Balochistan, and especially its capital Quetta, has faced a deadly wave of violence and bombings.

Aside from its rich mineral deposits, the province is also a key route of $64 billion megaproject, Pakistan-China Economic Corridor (PCEC), which aims to connect China's strategically important northwestern Xinxiang province to Balochistan's Gwadar port through a network of roads, railways, and pipelines to transport cargo, oil, and gas./aa

The once popular Lion & Cheetah Park, located some 25 kilometers (16 miles) west of Zimbabwe's capital Harare, is now mostly empty, hosting only a handful visitors in months amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Even Chinhoyi Caves, once a tourist hub, has lost the mob of visitors to coronavirus and business is in the doldrums, according to tourism activists in the town which is 120 kilometers (75 miles) northwest of Harare.

Not forgetting Cleveland dam about 10 kilometers (6 miles) east of Harare.

Just over a year ago, Cleveland dam used to draw hundreds of indigenous tourists every day, but with the advent of coronavirus, that is no more.

Low business

“Very few people come here now since coronavirus broke out, necessitating a series of lockdowns to defeat the disease. There is very little activity as you can see,” a security guard who manned the gate at the popular dam, told Anadolu Agency.

In the vicinity of Chinhoyi Caves, Mike Nharire, 32, who has over the years sold stone sculptors to tourists, has fallen on hard times.

“I have no money. Business is very low now since the government previously ordered closure of tourist spots and it means no money for us depending on providing services to tourists,” said Nharire.

Few tourists visiting Zimbabwe

With very few tourists trickling into the country, for many like Nharire who said he has a wife and three children to look after, it means hard times are in the offing.

Yet the crisis of many like him deepens at a time the world celebrates World Tourism Day on Sept. 27 each year.

In fact, since 1980, the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has celebrated World Tourism Day as international observances on Sept. 27, a date chosen in 1970 when the statutes of the UNWTO were adopted.

But with coronavirus shutting off the industry across the globe and in Zimbabwe in particular, the losses incurred have been colossal, leaving many like Nharire clutching at straws.

According to the UN, the impact of COVID-19 on tourism will cost the world economy $4 trillion, with developing countries among the most affected ones.

Job losses in tourism sector

Of course, that does not leave out Zimbabwe, where an estimated 54,000 people who worked in the sector have since lost their jobs, according to the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA).

“Before the pandemic, we had about 120 000 people that were employed in the tourism sector. I can safely say there were 40 to 45 percent of jobs that were lost during this period,” ZTA spokesman Godfrey Koti told Anadolu Agency.

“The Covid-19 pandemic has really decimated the tourism sector in a very big way,” he said.

“You will notice that in 2019, we had contributed about 1,3 billion US dollars into the fiscus. However, that was not to be in the year 2020 owing to the global pandemic, meaning then, we contributed 359 million US dollars into the fiscus, which our target, our comfortable zone was always between six and eight percent contribution to the GDP,” he added.

Tourists dropping in numbers

To Koti, “that speaks volumes in terms of what has been lost from a financial perspective.”

He also said: “in terms of visitors that came, we got about 2.6 million visitors in 2019 and the year 2020 also didn’t see much in terms of international travel which was very limited, highly limited.”

With many having lost jobs in the sector during the peak of the pandemic, officials like Koti, however remain optimistic.

“We are hoping to recover from the effects of the pandemic, but it would definitely take a lot. We are hoping to see an uptake now of more workers in the tourism sector, with Victoria Falls fully operational now, having reached 100% in vaccinating its people,” said Koti.

Last year as COVID-19 cases peaked, the government projected that the tourism sector could lose up to US$1.1 billion due to travel restrictions that crippled the industry.

"We anticipate a consequent fall in tourism business, with the country set to lose between $500 million to $1.1 billion in potential tourism revenue in 2020 from the projected revenue of $1.4 billion," said Mangaliso Ndlovu, Zimbabwe’s Tourism Minister addressing journalists in May.

White elephants

One lockdown after another has meant that as coronavirus wreaks havoc, tourist spots have turned into white elephants.

Precisely, this southern African nation’s tourism industry has suffered the worst income losses as there are few or no tourists to talk about in the midst of lockdowns to throttle the spread of the feared disease.

So far, Zimbabwe has recorded more than 128,000 coronavirus cases, with more than 4,500 deaths.

More than 2 million Zimbabweans have been fully vaccinated for the virus.

But even then, there is no respite for the tourism industry yet to recover from a series of lockdowns meant to stop the spread.

Wildlife not spared

Even the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Authority spokesman Tinashe Farawo openly said the authority was not spared by the negative effects of the virus.

“You know wildlife is a business. We have been affected a lot because you must know that our funding is hugely premised on wildlife and with coronavirus, it means our funding is dry. We have lost 70 to 80% of our budget,” Farawo told Anadolu Agency.​​​​​​​/agencies

Five Palestinians were killed in “Israeli” raids in the occupied West Bank on Sunday, according to “Israeli” media.

The Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper said the five lost their lives in an exchange of fire during an “Israeli” raid to arrest a number of Hamas members in the cities of Jenin and Ramallah.

According to the newspaper, three Palestinians were killed in the Bidu village, northwest Jerusalem, in an exchange of fire that erupted when Israeli forces surrounded a house in the village.

Two other Palestinians were killed in the village of Burqin, in southwestern Jenin city.

An Israeli military spokesman said the situation may escalate if Hamas fires rocket from the Gaza Strip.

The Palestinian Health Ministry, for its part, confirmed that five Palestinians were killed in the “Israeli” raids.

Jenin Governor Akram al-Rujoub said nine Palestinians were also injured by “Israeli” gunfire during the arrest campaign.

The Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Palestinian resistance group Hamas, confirmed that three members were killed in an exchange of fire with “Israeli” forces in Bidu village.

The brigades identified in a statement the three as Ahmed Zahran, Zakaria Badwan and Mahmoud Ehmeidan.

It called on the Palestinians in the occupied West Bank to “escalate all forms of resistance with a view to exhausting the [Israeli] enemy.”

Saraya al-Quds Brigades, the military arm of Islamic Jihad group, also confirmed that its member Osama Soboh was killed in clashes with Israeli forces in Jenin./aa

Air pollution is a serious problem in India and calls for nationwide action, a leading public health expert said as the World Environmental Health Day is being observed on Sunday.

K. Srinath Reddy, president of the Public Health Foundation think tank told Anadolu Agency that environmental pollution is an important area of concern concerning the public health point of view in the country and more steps are needed to deal with the problem.

"It is certainly bad in some parts of the country where air pollution levels are quite high and they need to be brought down. In other parts too, where they are somewhat lower but still exceed WHO norms, action is needed to reduce pollution levels to reduce health hazards," said Reddy.

"It calls for all India action except for some places, where their quality is very good. There are many places with poor air quality ... we need to undertake action to improve the air quality."

Air pollution, especially in the national capital of New Delhi, has become a serious problem which worsens during the winter from November to January.

A report by the Lancet medical journal said last year that air pollution killed 1.7 million Indians in 2019.

According to Reddy, two types of pollution that are particularly of concern: ambient air pollution or outdoor air pollution and indoor air pollution. "Both are produced by different causes and they are causing several health-related problems," he said.

Stating that outdoor pollution levels differ from one part of the country to another, Reddy said urban pollution levels are more, but "rural pollution levels are also increasing."

He said the priority should be right now to control all sources of emission of pollution as much as possible.

"It is not a question of sources of emission only but we must also look at the exposure. Who is the population which is more exposed? If a factory is situated in a remote area and is not surrounded by a thickly populated area, the emission may be high, but the impact will be slow. On the other hand, if a factory is situated in a crowded area, the exposure will be much higher," he said. "Even if the garbage is burning, if it comes to a nearby urban area, the exposure will be much higher."

He stressed that there is a need to look at emission sources and the level of exposure to the public.

"We should try and mitigate as much as possible the sources of pollution and ensure we don't have sources of pollution located in highly populated areas," said the expert.

Maintaining that policies to control pollution exist, Reddy noted that there is a need to do more.

"Policies are there. They (government) are trying to put counter policies in place," he said.

"A few years back, a health ministry committee of which I was also part -- we suggested a multisector kind of multi-sectoral kind of action, which is now developed and adopted by the health ministry with other ministries. (NITI) Ayog has developed a plan. so they are trying to implement as much as possible and reduce the sources of pollution. But, we need to do more," he added referring to the government's main policy think-tank,

The federal government in December said it "has been taking all steps possible to combat air pollution in Delhi and North India and is working toward deploying all possible technological interventions towards that".

"Through the National Clean Air Programme, which is a city-specific plan, is working in that direction with a target to achieve 20 to 30% reduction in PM (particulate matter)10 and PM2.5 concentrations by 2024," said then-Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Prakash Javadekar.

Reddy’s message on World Environment Day is the need of the hour is to reverse the damage done to the environment.

"Without protecting the environment, human health will be damaged in many, many ways and it will not only affect the people who are currently living, but it will also affect the generations to come," he said, adding that it is very important "we protect and preserve the environment, reverse the damage which we have done to the extent possible.”/aa

A recent salmonella outbreak with no known food source has more than doubled in infections in over a week.

On Sept. 15, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 127 people in 25 states had been infected with salmonella, resulting in 18 hospitalizations. On Thursday, the CDC announced the number of reported illness had more than doubled: 279 people have been sickened, and the outbreak has reached another four states. An additional eight people have now been hospitalized because of salmonella.

On Sept. 2, 20 people were reported sick by the strain of Salmonella Oranienburg. Since then, the CDC says the outbreak has "grown rapidly."

No food source has been attributed to the outbreak, but state and local officials from infected states have collected food samples from restaurants where sick people ate and found salmonella in a condiment cup containing cilantro and lime. The cup also had onions, but they weren't inside when the food was tested.

"Because multiple food items were present in the container and in the sample that was tested, it is not possible to know which food item was contaminated. We are using this information in conjunction with other available information to help narrow the list of possible foods linked to illness," the agency said in a statement.

Health officials also believe true number of infections is much higher than reported as some people recover from salmonella without medical care and therefore are not tested for it. It can also takes up to four weeks to determine whether someone was part of an outbreak.

CDC data shows the outbreak has stretched across the U.S.; Texas, 81, and Oklahoma, 40, have the most cases. Other notable states with outbreaks include Illinois, 23, Virginia, 22, and Minnesota, 19. The infected people have ranged in age from less than a year old to 89 years old; 59% of sick people are females. No deaths have been reported.

Symptoms of salmonella infection include diarrhea, vomiting, fever, stomach cramps and dehydration, which can begin six hours to six days after being exposed to the bacteria, according to the CDC. Most people recover without treatment after four to seven days.

Children under the age of 5, people 65 years and older and those with weakened immune systems may experience more severe illness from salmonella.

Last month, 862,000 pounds of uncured antipasto products were recalled for possible salmonella contamination that caused sickness in people across 17 states.

The CDC recommends people practice food safety measures such as cleaning utensils, hands and foods, as well as separating different foods and making sure all food is cooked to a high enough temperature. The agency also recommends refrigerating perishable foods within two hours and thawing foods in a refrigerator.

USA TODAY