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People are sleeping for longer hours during lockdowns and work from the home scenario as they do not need to travel to workplaces but the quality of sleep has become worse in many, reveals new research. If the differences in sleep timing and duration between workdays and days off become too large, this can lead to " social jetlag ". The latest survey by the University of Basel in Switzerland found respondents admitting sleeping up to 50 minutes longer than before the lockdown. One factor contributing to this could be that people no longer had to commute to work in the morning. Flexible working hours, no commuting and potentially more time to sleep led to a reduction in "social jetlag", according to psychologist Dr Christine Blume from the University of Basel. However, the reduction of "social jetlag" was not paralleled by an improvement in perceived sleep quality. To the contrary, those surveyed reported that their sleep quality actually deteriorated a...

More than 100 people were arrested during far-right protests in London, which turned violent and left 19 others, including six police officers, injured, Scotland Yard said. As of 9 p.m. on Saturday, at least 100 were arrested for offences including violent disorder, assaulting police officers, possession of an offensive weapon, possession of class A drugs, being drunk and disorderly and breach of the peace, Xinhua news agency quoted Scotland Yard as saying. Saturday's protests took place following a series of anti-racism demonstrations across Britain, sparked by the May 25 death of George Floyd, an unarmed African-American in the US city of Minneapolis. He died after a white police officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes while he was handcuffed facing down and repeatedly saying that he couldn't breathe. The arrests came after around 200 protesters breached the 5 p.m. curfew with most congregating around the statue of war-time leader Winston Churchill in Parliament ...

Olena Zelenska, wife of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, announced via her official social media account that she has tested positive for COVID-19 virus. "I feel good, but I am in outpatient treatment, isolated from other family members not to endanger them," the first lady said on her Instagram on Friday, Xinhua news agency reported. According to local media, Zelensky and his two children had also been tested for the virus, and their results were negative. Zelenska said she does not know how she contracted COVID-19, as she tested negative at the beginning of June, and has followed all the quarantine rules of the health ministry, including wearing masks and gloves, and minimizing her number of contacts. Noting that the danger of contracting the coronavirus is real despite the easing of some quarantine restrictions, Zelenska called on everyone to wear masks in public spaces. A total of 29,753 confirmed COVID-19 cases with 870 deaths and 13,567 recoveries have been re...

North Korea did not answer South Korea's liaison office phone call on Tuesday after vowing to cut off all inter-Korean communication lines later in the day in anger over Seoul's failure to stop defectors from sending anti-Pyongyang leaflets. "The liaison office attempted to call North Korea this morning, but the North did not answer," the South's Unification Ministry said. North Korea also did not answer calls via military hotlines, according to the Defence Ministry. Earlier in the day, the North said it will sever all communication lines with the South at noon Tuesday, accusing Seoul of turning a blind eye to North Korean defectors sending propaganda leaflets criticizing Pyongyang's leadership, reports Yonhap News Agency. The North also said it will treat the South as an "enemy". "The disgusting riff-raff have committed hostile acts against North Korea by taking advantage of the south Korean authorities' irresponsible stance...

A US Air Force staff sergeant has been arrested for the killing of a Santa Cruz County Sheriff's deputy in Northern California. Steven Carrillo, the 32-year-old suspect, serving in a military police unit at Travis Air Force Base, was wounded during the arrest and transported to a hospital on Saturday, reports Xinhua news agency. He will be charged with murder and other felonies for the killing of sheriff's deputy Damon Gutzwiller, Santa Cruz County Sheriff Jim Hart said on Sunday. According to a report by the San Francisco Chronicle on Sunday, the FBI said that the killing of Gutzwiller may be linked to the previous shooting death of a security guard in a similar ambush style outside a federal building in Oakland during demonstrations May 29. A white van was recorded leaving the scene of Oakland shooting and the suspect vehicle in the Saturday shooting was also a white van. The FBI is investigating the case in partnership with the Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office, th...

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau warned on Thursday that the COVID-19 pandemic remains serious in Canada. The rise in infections has slowed across all age groups and in most regions of the country, but Trudeau said the situation remains serious in some regions where large numbers of new cases are still being reported, as well as in places like long-term care homes, Xinhua reported. "I want to be very clear. We're not out of the woods. The pandemic is still threatening the health and safety of Canadians," Trudeau said at a press conference on Thursday. "While we start loosening some restrictions, we also have to strengthen other measure... And as people head back to work, it's even more important that we keep a two-meter distance from others, wash our hands, and wear a mask when physical distancing is not always possible," Trudeau added. Meanwhile, Canada's Chief Public Health Officer Theresa Tam warned that Canada could see "explosive grow...

Uday Kotak, Managing Director & CEO of Kotak Mahindra Bank, has taken over as the new President of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). The industry body on Wednesday announced new office-bearers for the year 2020-21. Kotak takes over from Vikram Kirloskar, Chairman and Managing Director of Kirloskar Systems Ltd, and Vice Chairman of Toyota Kirloskar Motor. Kotak has been associated with CII for over two decades and has served it in many capacities. He has been the Chairman of CII Economic Affairs Council, Financial Sector Development Council, Services Council, Corporate Governance Council, Banking Committee, Capital Markets Committee and Financial Services Committee over the last many years. Kotak was also the President Designate for the last two years. T.V. Narendran, CEO & Managing Director of Tata Steel Ltd, is now the President Designate of CII for 2020-21. Further, Chairman and Managing Director of Bajaj Finserv, Sanjiv Bajaj has taken over as CII Vice Presiden...