COLOMBO: The dramatic recent fire on a container ship off Sri Lanka highlighted the risks involved in the island nation’s ambitions to become one of the world’s busiest maritime transport hubs. The MV X-Press Pearl burned for 13 days, releasing tons of chemicals and plastics. The sinking ship’s nearly 300 tons of fuel oil may now leak into the Indian Ocean.

PARIS: France has opened a probe into the personal wealth of Riad Salameh, central bank chief in crisis-hit Lebanon, sources said yesterday. Paris financial prosecutors have opened a preliminary probe into criminal association and money laundering by Salameh, a source close to the investigation and a judicial source said, following a similar move by Switzerland.

KUWAIT: Kuwait’s Ministry of Health confirmed yesterday there was a daily inventory of COVID-19 vaccines being received and actually used, therefore the whole quantity was accounted for. 

ABUJA: Telecoms operators in Nigeria restricted Twitter yesterday, a day after the government announced its indefinite suspension for activities “capable of undermining Nigeria’s corporate existence”. International human rights groups have already condemned the move.

MIAMI: Thousands of people have descended on Miami for a massive two-day bitcoin conference that opened Friday-a sign that the US city, in the midst of a tech boom, is hoping to become the next cryptocurrency hub. 

SAN FRANCISCO: Facebook on Friday banned former US president Donald Trump for two years, saying he deserved the maximum punishment for violating platform rules over a deadly attack by his supporters on the US Capitol. 

NEW DELHI: India yesterday issued “one last notice” to Twitter to comply with new IT regulations that the social media giant says threaten privacy guarantees. 

KUWAIT: Kuwait said 1,280 people tested positive for coronavirus while four related deaths were reported on Friday, while 1,443 people tested positive for coronavirus and four related deaths were reported on Thursday taking the total up to 314,569 and 1,787, respectively. 

WASHINGTON: American businesses remain optimistic about their recovery from the pandemic, but a Federal Reserve report shows supply disruptions and labor shortages have begun to boost prices and crimp output.