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| - Duty Editor: Katy Lee Tel: +33 1 40.41.79.31 -- TOP STORIES -- + WHO says AstraZeneca jab is safe + Russia backs Afghanistan interim rule with Taliban + South Africa's controversial Zulu king dies at 72 + Twin births at global 'all-time high' + Fresh start for French Oscars after #MeToo row? Health-virus,WRAP GENEVA The World Health Organization said there is no reason to stop using AstraZeneca's Covid-19 vaccine after several countries suspended the rollout over blood clot fears and the EU added severe allergies to the list of possible side effects. 800 words 1500 GMT by AFP bureaus. Picture. Video. Graphic Also moved: Health-virus,FACTS Russia-Turkey-Afghanistan-diplomacy,WRAP MOSCOW Russia says it backs the Taliban's integration into a future interim government in Afghanistan, as global powers ramp up efforts to secure a peace deal and end decades of war. 650 words 1500 GMT by Jonathan Brown with Burin Gercek in Ankara SAfrica-royals-death,WRAP JOHANNESBURG Goodwill Zwelithini, the controversial but revered king of the Zulus, South Africa's largest ethnic group, dies aged 72 after weeks in hospital for a diabetes-related illness. 700 words 1530 GMT by Hillary Orinde and Susan Njanji. File Picture. Video Health-science-children-twins,lead PARIS More twins -- one in every 42 children born -- are coming into the world than ever before, according to new research citing the rapid rise in medically assisted reproduction as a key factor. 550 words moved by Marlowe Hood France-film-award-gender-virus PARIS France's annual celebration of cinema, Les Cesars, hopes for renewal after a bitter fall-out last year over the industry's response to the #MeToo movement. 500 words moved by Francois Becker. Graphic -- SPOTLIGHT -- India-fashion-economy-discrimination,FOCUS MUMBAI The sound of men punching holes into colourful rubber sheets reverberates across a tiny studio in India's largest slum -- an unlikely birthplace for luxury handbags made by a marginalised community seeking to reclaim its identity. 700 words moved by Ammu Kannampilly. Picture. Video China-lifestyle-animal,FOCUS SHANGHAI A baby raccoon to stroke while you sip your skinny latte? Or a snake to coil around you after your cappuccino? Forget dog or cat cafes, Shanghai's animal cafe scene has expanded to include a wider -- and more exotic -- kingdom. 600 words moved by Peter Stebbings and Lan Lianchao. Picture. Video -- CORONAVIRUS -- Health-virus-pharmaceutical,FACTS PARIS Could treatments using lab-made versions of the body's natural infection-fighting defences become a crucial tool in the pandemic fight, alongside vaccines? 750 words moved by Marie-Morgane Le Moel and Julien Dury US-Japan-India-Australia-China-diplomacy,WRAP WASHINGTON The United States, India, Japan and Australia have launched a joint drive to ramp up the Covid-19 vaccine supply in Asia, mounting a challenge to China in the first-ever summit of the four democracies. 700 words 1500 GMT by Shaun Tandon. Pictures. Video Health-virus-pharmaceutical-France-Sanofi,lead PARIS French pharmaceutical firm Sanofi announces the launch of human trials for a new Covid-19 vaccine as it looks to recover from early failures and restore dented French pride. 550 words moved by Adam Plowright Health-virus-wine-France,FOCUS PARIS No one likes to lose their sense of smell or taste -- a common symptom of Covid-19 -- but for the sommeliers and other wine professionals of France, it is particularly traumatic. 600 words moved by Eric Randolph -- AFRICA -- Nigeria-unrest-kidnap-school,WRAP KANO, Nigeria Nigerian gunmen raid a college in a northwestern state and at least 30 students are feared kidnapped, a senior government official says, in the latest abduction targeting a school. 600 words 1530 GMT by Aminu Abubakar with Joel Olatunde Agoi in Lagos Benin-Netherlands-crime-kidnapping,WRAP THE HAGUE Pirates have kidnapped 15 sailors in the Gulf of Guinea after boarding the Dutch-owned vessel, raising concerns for the missing crew's safety in yet another incident in the busy but dangerous shipping area. 550 words 1500 GMT by Jan Hennop -- EUROPE -- Britain-EU-Brexit-trade,FOCUS LONDON The financial toll of Brexit is clear for exporters like cookware maker Neil Currie: He is buried in new paperwork, has lost orders and the cost of exporting frying pans to France has doubled. 600 words moved by Jean-Baptiste Oubrier. Picture. Also moved: Health-virus-Britain-economy-indicator,2ndlead -- MIDDLE EAST -- Egypt-politics-rights-UN-diplomacy,lead GENEVA Egypt must stop using anti-terrorism laws to muzzle critics and even keep them in pre-trial detention indefinitely, dozens of countries tell the UN. 600 words moved by Nina Larson. Video Libya-conflict-politics,Q&A TRIPOLI Libya's new government, approved in a "historic" parliamentary vote this week, faces a long list of challenges to unite the country after 10 years of strife. 750 words 1430 GMT by Hamza Mekouar Lifestyle-Egypt-Armenia-culture-crafts,VIDEOESSAY CAIRO Time seems to have stood still at Papazian's, an Armenian Egyptian watchmaker whose almost 120-year-old Cairo shop has withstood the decades, surviving political upheavals and urban transformations. 600 words moved by Emmanuel Parisse. Picture. Video -- AMERICAS -- US-politics-Senate-Democrats-filibuster,FOCUS WASHINGTON US President Joe Biden and Democrats hailed the passage of historic pandemic relief this week, but other priorities which cleared the House including bolstering voting rights are likely destined for the "graveyard" of a 50-50 Senate. 700 words moved by Michael Mathes. Picture. File picture -- ASIA -- Myanmar-politics-military,WRAP YANGON Britain advises its citizens to flee Myanmar, as ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi's lawyer rejects junta corruption claims against her as 'groundless'. 800 words moved. Photo. Video. Graphic Also moved: Myanmar-politics-military-India Myanmar-politics-military-press China-HongKong-politics,WRAP BEIJING China's plans for electoral reform in Hong Kong, coupled with the imposition of a security law, amount to a "combination of punches" to quell unrest in the southern city, a top Beijing official says. 500 words moved by Beiyi Seow and Helen Roxburgh. Picture. Video. Live video. Graphic China-animal-conservation-cruelty BEIJING A Chinese hotel built around a central polar bear enclosure for the non-stop viewing pleasure of its guests opens to immediate condemnation from conservationists. 300 words moved. Picture. Video -- BUSINESS/ECONOMY -- OECD-economy-politics-Australia,WRAP PARIS Australia's former finance minister Mathias Cormann is elected as the new head of the OECD group of advanced economies, despite warnings from environmental groups his record on fighting climate change is not strong enough. 600 words 1530 GMT by Eve Szeftel and Adam Plowright Also moved: OECD-economy-politics-Australia,PROFILE China-business-tech-Alibaba,2ndlead BEIJING China denies it is planning to hit e-commerce giant Alibaba with a record fine of almost $1 billion for allegedly flouting monopoly rules, as authorities turn up the pressure on the country's vast technology sector. 650 words moved -- ENTERTAINMENT -- Entertainment-US-music-Grammys,ADVANCER NEW YORK With a Black Lives Matter protest song and one of the year's hottest hits, Beyonce will strive Sunday to end her streak of snubs at the Grammys, as the music world attempts to turn the page on a devastating 2020. 850 words moved by Maggy Donaldson. File picture. Graphic Also moved: Entertainment-US-music-Grammys-nominees,FACTS Belgium-music-celebrity,FOCUS BRUSSELS In the pantheon of 20th century music icons it is almost unheard of to discover, decades later, new fly-on-the wall insights to the artist's most controversial period. Fans of Jacques Brel, the legendary Belgian chanteur, have long raked over the coals of his final years. 700 words 1500 GMT by Matthieu Demeestere. File pictures -- SPORT -- Fbl-Afr-CAF-president-Motsepe,WRAP RABAT Sole candidate South African Patrice Motsepe is confirmed as Confederation of African Football (CAF) president in a deal brokered by the sport's global body FIFA and pleads for unity as he seeks to fix the troubled organisation. 650 words 1630 GMT. Picture Cycling-GBR-TeamSky-tribunal-Freeman-doping,WRAP LONDON Ex-Team Sky and British Cycling chief doctor Richard Freeman ordered banned testosterone knowing or believing it was to be given to a rider for the purposes of doping, a medical tribunal rules. 600 words moved by Pirate Irwin MMA-UFC-CHN-Yan,FOCUS SHANGHAI Yan Xiaonan once sold furry toys at a market but the woman described as a "pit bull" is now charging towards a historic all-Chinese UFC title fight. 550 words moved by Peter Stebbings. Picture. Video afp
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