YANGON -- Myanmar authorities seized over 1,160 tons of illegal timbers across Myanmar in two weeks, according to a statement from the Forest Department under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation on Wednesday.

The seizures were made in the country's regions, states and Nay Pyi Taw Union Territory on Jan. 4-17. (Myanmar-Illegal-Timbers-Seizure)

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MOSCOW -- Russian Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said that herd immunity against COVID-19 in Russia can be reached in the first half of 2021, TASS news agency reported Wednesday. (Russia-Coronavirus)

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KATHMANDU -- India will supply one million doses of COVID-10 vaccines to Nepal as assistance, Nepal's Minister of Health and Population Hridayas Tripathi announced on Wednesday.

"The vaccines to be made available by India will arrive in Nepal on Thursday," he said at a joint press meet organized by the ministry and the Indian embassy in Kathmandu.

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HONG KONG -- The building of a temporary hospital funded by the central government for treating COVID-19 patients in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) was completed Wednesday.

The North Lantau Hospital Hong Kong Infection Control Center, built next to another treatment facility at AsiaWorld-Expo, is capable of providing 136 wards and 816 negative pressure beds, which will greatly ease the pressure on the local public health system amid the coronavirus epidemic. (Hong Kong-COVID-19-Hospital)

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SUVA -- Fiji's Office of the Director of Public Prosecution (ODPP) said 246 people were charged with a total of 531 counts of serious sexual offences last year, with more than half of the victims under the age of 18, according to Fiji Broadcasting Corporation (FBC) on Wednesday.

Of the 246 accused persons, 21 were juveniles and two were police officers. The offences range from attempted rape, aiding and abetting rape, assault with intent to rape, abduction with intent to commit rape, indecent assault, defilement and sexual assault. (Fiji-Suva-Sexual-Offences)

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WASHINGTON -- Outgoing U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday granted pardon to 73 people, including his former White House adviser Steve Bannon, in his last day in office, the White House said.

Bannon, 67, was charged last year with defrauding Trump supporters of hundreds of thousands of dollars in a border wall fundraising campaign. He has pleaded not guilty. (U.S.-Trump-Pardon)

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HERAT, Afghanistan -- Unknown armed men opened fire on a military vehicle in Afghanistan's western Herat city, killing three on the spot on Wednesday, police said. (Afghanistan-Shooting) Enditem

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