This comes amid a rapid surge in spread of the disease in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, and its detection in neighbouring countries as well.

India is planning to soon sign new and updated mineral pacts with about a dozen countries in Africa. The Ministry of Mines is in discussions with Cte d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Morocco, Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe, Business Standard has learnt. Negotiations are ongoing with around a dozen countries, and more will be added to the list soon.

India's role as a leader of the global south may require it to give up its ambition to serve as a bridge between the warring halves of the international community, points out Mihir S Sharma.

Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have been invited to join the grouping.

Three Indian peacekeepers, who lost their lives serving under the UN flag last year, are among the 103 military, police, and civilian peacekeepers who will be honoured posthumously with a prestigious medal in the United Nations for their service and supreme sacrifice in the line of duty.

World Cup winner Argentina topped the FIFA rankings on Thursday for the first time in six years.

A round-up of Tuesday's action in the UEFA Champions League.

The two soldiers were part of MONUSCO -- the United Nations Organisation Stabilisation Mission in the DR Congo.

Monkeypox is a viral zoonosis (a virus transmitted to humans from animals) with symptoms similar to those seen in the past in smallpox patients, although it is clinically less severe.

Amid increasing cases of monkeypox being reported in non-endemic countries, the government on Tuesday issued guidelines directing district surveillance units to consider even one such case as an outbreak and initiating a detailed investigation through the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme.

Boris Becker's thunderous delivery earned him the nickname 'Boom Boom' as a 17-year-old Wimbledon winner in 1985 but on Friday, aged 54 and bust, the German great was told he must serve time in prison.

German tennis great Boris Becker was jailed by a London court on Friday for hiding hundreds of thousands of pounds of assets after he was declared bankrupt.

After decades of decline, the global prevalence of undernourishment is increasing.

"Let no one have to repeat the tragic words like George Perry Floyd, Jr: 'I can't breathe'", the Delhi high court has said, holding that the law does not permit people to be beaten up in police custody or during interrogation as the punishment for a criminal act is to be determined by a court of law.

'With more and more young people relocating outside their home states for work, an all-India MLDA of 21 would be a good way to ensure that more Indians can go with the flow,' recommends Kanika Datta.

We present our alphabet of 2020, pulling in everything you'll remember about this year we'd rather forget.

Images from Day 1 of the US Open in New York, on Monday.

India is too diverse to be governed centrally and with a single system. The way forward is for the central government to keep the monopoly of military power and a share of national resources while the provinces must have greater autonomy, recommends Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).

'Every strongman leader is faced with the same opportunity: Harness the increased societal panic to amass more power,' warns Mihir S Sharma.

The Italian federation (FIGC) is determined to complete the season and its president Gabriele Gravina has been presenting new ideas on an almost daily basis of how that can be done. Meanwhile, Turkmenistan in Central Asia is set to resume its soccer season with spectators at the weekend, making it only the second country in the world to let fans attend matches as the new coronavirus shuts down almost all of world football.

News of all that's transpired on and off the football field

Senegal showed their teeth on the opening day of qualifiers for the 2021 African Cup of Nations but other continental heavyweights struggled to find form on Wednesday.

'Should the new ISIS leadership opt for a consolidation, the Afghan-Pakistan border would be an attractive place,' warns Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd).

'The one thing India has over these two States, whose toughness awes us, is our ability to embrace diversity with ease. 'The way ahead lies in learning from Vajpayee's method, not in Xi Jinping's,' says Shekhar Gupta.

The 51-year-old was declared bankrupt by a British court in 2017 in connection to a debt to private bankers Arbuthnot Latham & Co, and the company dealing with his bankruptcy decided to auction 82 items from his collection.

Jaishankar is the first foreign secretary to head the Ministry of External Affairs as minister.

The parade began after President Ram Nath Kovind conferred the Ashoka Chakra -- India's highest peacetime gallantry award -- to Lance Naik Nazir Ahmad Wani, a militant-turned-soldier who laid down his life fighting a group of terrorists in Shopian in Kashmir in November.

Various facets of Mahatma Gandhi's life journey were displayed by the 22 tableaux that rolled down the Rajpath during the 70th Republic Day Parade.

India is showcasing its military strength and achievements in a range of areas.

'What is the problem in getting the UK to extradite our citizens?' asks Aakar Patel.

Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho has promised to show plenty of restraint and respect if he inflicts a first Premier League defeat of the season on his former side Chelsea on Saturday.

The Central African Republic (CAR) said on Tuesday that a diplomatic passport that tennis star Boris Becker claims entitles him to immunity in bankruptcy proceedings in Britain "is a fake."

News of all that's transpired on and off the football field

The World Happiness Report published on Wednesday ranked 156 countries by happiness levels, based on factors such as life expectancy, social support and corruption.

'The issue of the larger homeland of Nagalim, the dream of the Nagas to hold sway over swathes of Manipur, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh, is just that, a dream.' 'The NSCN has been told categorically that the government is not going to concede on this issue.'

Kaleidoscopic lights replace incandescent glory this year.

Images from the FIFA 2018 World Cup qualifiers played across the globe on Saturday

India, which was listed 78th last year, has improved its ranking, figuring at 75th position with a visa-free score of 51

Cristiano Ronaldo came off the bench and scored an opportunist goal which set Portugal on the way to a 2-0 win in Andorra on Saturday that maintained their chances of qualifying directly for the World Cup.

The linking of biometric UID/Aadhaar number to all public services makes "We, the People of India" worse than slaves, says Gopal Krishna.