Syria's President Bashar al-Assad and his wife have tested positive for COVID-19, his office has confirmed. Officials said 55-year-old President Assad and his wife Asma are both in "good health and in a stable condition". The pair will return to work after spending two to three weeks in isolation in their home. Live coronavirus updates from the UK and around the world In a statement, Mr Assad's office said the couple took PCR tests after they felt minor symptoms consistent with coronavirus. Advertisement Syria, which marks 10 years of war next week, has recorded nearly 16,000 cases of COVID-19 and more than 1,000 deaths from the virus, according to Johns Hopkins University. The country began a vaccination campaign last week, but no details have been given about the process. More from UK Meghan and Harry interview latest: Live updates as Duke of Sussex tells Oprah about awkward call with Queen Meghan and Harry interview: Queen … [Read more...] about COVID-19: Syrian president Bashar al-Assad and wife test positive for coronavirus
Clonus test positive
School return explained: New rules on testing and masks – as pupils face longer days
England’s 8million state school pupils are today flooding back to full classes for the first time since December. In the national lockdown, only vulnerable or key workers’ children could attend in person with the rest learning at home. Now all schools are opening to all pupils in the same week in Step One of Boris Johnson ’s roadmap out of lockdown. Secondary pupils will get twice-a-week tests and be told to wear face masks in the classroom to slow the spread. But worried unions had wanted a phased reopening amid fears it could lead to a rise of Covid rates in the community. Ministers insist the reopening will be “irreversible”, even if the R number goes above 1. But local closures could still spring into action if there’s a local spike. Here’s what you need to know. Which schools are going back when? All state schools in England are being told to welcome back all pupils from today, Monday 8 March. For primary schools, this should mean all pupils return to … [Read more...] about School return explained: New rules on testing and masks – as pupils face longer days
Mum who says she got pregnant despite never having full sex nicknamed ‘Virgin Mary’
A mum who says she fell pregnant without ever having had full sex has been nicknamed "Virgin Mary". Nicole Moore couldn't believe it when she learned she was expecting a baby eight years ago as she says she was still a virgin at the time. The supply teacher from Portsmouth, Hampshire, suffered from a condition called vaginismus which causes the vaginal walls to involuntary constrict. It's believed to affect roughly one in 500 women at some point in life. This meant she was never able to insert a tampon, have a pap smear, or ever have full sex. When she got together with her partner, Nicola says they found other ways to be intimate with each other that didn't involve penetrative sex, and against the odds she still managed to conceive. So it came as the shock of her life when she took a pregnancy test one lunchtime at work and it came back positive. "I’d spent all my teenage life not being able to insert a tampon, so I knew something was not quite right," Nicola, now 28, … [Read more...] about Mum who says she got pregnant despite never having full sex nicknamed ‘Virgin Mary’