The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Tuesday gave the official name for the latest novel coronavirus, that has sickened more than 42,000 people, as 'Covid-19,' which stands for coronavirus disease starting in 2019. The CO stands for corona, while the VI for virus and the D for the disease. "Under agreed guidelines between WHO, the OIE Animal Health and FAO, we had to find a name that did not refer to a geographical location, an animal, an individual or group of people, and which is also pronounceable and related to the disease," WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a press

A second plane chartered to bring Canadians from Wuhan in China is bound for Vancouver International Airport, and scheduled to arrive shortly after 8 pm. Foreign Affairs Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne says 185 passengers were screened for symptoms of the new coronavirus and allowed on board. The plane will stop briefly at the Vancouver airport for refuelling before continuing on to Ontario, where the passengers will be quarantined at a Canadian Forces Base for two weeks. Similar to the first chartered plane that departed from Wuhan last week, arrangements have been made with the BC gove

An eighth Canadian is among the 66 fresh cases of the new coronavirus detected aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship under quarantine in Japan. All affected passengers and crew have been transported to Japanese hospitals. None of the 213 Canadians flown out of Wuhan, China last week is showing any symptoms of the virus while in quarantine at CFB Trenton, Ontario. Another 236 Canadians are hoping to board a plane due to leave Wuhan today.

The death toll in the viral outbreak in mainland China has risen to 722, while new cases jumped to 34,546, reversing declines over previous days. China's ruling Communist Party faced public anger and recrimination over the death of a doctor who was threatened by the authorities after trying to sound the alarm about the new coronavirus back in December. Meanwhile, cruise ship passengers faced more woe as Japan reported 41 new cases on one quarantined vessel and turned away another. President Xi Jinping spoke with President Donald Trump and urged the U.S. to ``respond reasonably'' to the outbre

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has brought some star power from the sports world to his game plan in Africa this week as he pursues support for a seat for Canada on the powerful United Nations Security Council. Trudeau is in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa where he will attend a weekend session of the African Union. It's a chance for Trudeau to meet directly with several of the 54 African leaders, whose votes at a June meeting at the UN will be critical to Canada's success. Along with three of his cabinet ministers, Trudeau is travelling with Toronto Raptors President Masai Ujiri. While T

The Chinese doctor who first broke out the information about a "SARS-like" disease in December last year died of the coronavirus. Li Wenliang died of the deadly disease in the early hour of Friday (local time) at the Wuhan Central Hospital. "Our hospital's ophthalmologist Li Wenliang was unfortunately infected with coronavirus during his work in the fight against the coronavirus epidemic," the hospital statement read on Friday, as quoted by CNN. Soon after the news of Li's death broke out, Chinese people started pouring tribute to the doctor. In December last year, Li informed his medical sch

Two more Canadians have been confirmed infected with the novel coronavirus but they are not home, instead they are on a cruise ship off Japan. The pair were among the 10 people who tested positive after 10 initial cases were confirmed earlier in the week. The ship has since been quarantined and will likely remain so for two weeks. The cruise line says it will continue to fully co-operate with and follow the instructions of global medical authorities and the Japanese government.

China has reported new deaths by a viral outbreak have risen by 73 in the past 24 hours. That brings the number of confirmed cases to 28,018, an increase of 3,694. The little-understood new coronavirus has spread fear around the world, along with the shunning of any suspected to have a link to the outbreak that appeared in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December and has revived fears of the deadly 2002-2003 outbreak of SARS. SARS had killed almost 800 people.

Kirk Douglas, the muscular actor with the dimpled chin who starred in ``Spartacus,'' ``Lust for Life'' and dozens of other films and helped fatally weaken the Hollywood blacklist, has died at 103, his family announced. Douglas was nominated three times for Oscars _ for ``Champion,'' ``The Bad and the Beautiful'' and ``Lust for Life.'' He later received an honorary award for ``50 years as a creative and moral force'' in the movie industry. His son Michael won Oscars as producer for ``One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'' and as actor for ``Wall Street.''