Europe

LONDON (AP) — A half-million people in the English city of Liverpool will be regularly tested for COVID-19 in Britain’s first citywide trial of widespread, rapid testing that the government hopes will be a new weapon in combating the pandemic.

Testing will begin later this week at sites throughout the city using a variety of technologies, including new methods that can provide results in an hour or less, the government said in a statement Tuesday. Everyone who lives or works in the city in northwestern England will be offered the test, regardless of whether they have symptoms.

VIENNA (AP) — A man who had previously tried to join the Islamic State group rampaged in Vienna armed with an automatic rifle and a fake explosive vest, fatally shooting four people before he was killed by police, Austrian authorities said Tuesday.

Witnesses described dozens of screaming people fleeing the sounds of gunshots Monday night in a nightlife district crowded with revelers enjoying the last hours before a coronavirus lockdown.

MOSCOW, November 3. /TASS/: Initial superficial deliberations on causes of the terrorist act in Vienna on Monday are inappropriate, an investigation is needed, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova stated on Tuesday in an interview with the Russia-24 TV channel.

"No initial and superfluous deliberations are appropriate. An investigation is necessary which is actually conducted now by Austria's competent bodies," the diplomat said in response to a question on causes of this terrorist act.

MOSCOW, November 3. /TASS/: Russia’s inter-agency commission approved the crew of the 65th long-term expedition to the International Space Station (ISS), the State Space Corporation Roscosmos announced on its website on Tuesday.

The next expedition will blast off aboard a Soyuz MS-18 crewed spacecraft from the Baikonur spaceport to the International Space Station in April 2021, Roscosmos specified.

MINSK, November 3. /TASS/: Belarus and Russia continue talks on natural gas pricing in 2021 and Minsk has no debts for consumed gas at present, Prime Minister of Belarus Roman Golovchenko said on Monday on the air with the Belarus-1 TV Channel.

"Settlements for consumed gas have been completed; we have no debt to the Russian Federation. We would like to negotiate in the near future the natural gas pricing for Belarus in the next year, expecting that it will be attractive for us," Golovchenko said.

MOSCOW, November 3. /TASS/: The world is going through a critical stage of the coronavirus pandemic, and the situation will be complicated in the next few months, the World Health Organization's representative to Russia Melita Vujnovic told TASS.

"Globally, we are at a critical stage of the pandemic, especially in the northern hemisphere. The next few months will be very difficult, and some countries are in a difficult situation," she stressed. "The COVID-19 incidence continues to grow, while the number of new deaths has remained relatively stable recently."

MOSCOW, November 3. /TASS/: Russia’s coronavirus cases grew by 18,648 in the past 24 hours reaching 1,673,686, the anti-coronavirus crisis center told reporters on Tuesday.

According to the crisis center, the growth rate has stood at 1.1% for two days.

The lowest growth rates were recorded in Chechnya, Tatarstan and Dagestan (0.5% each), the Moscow Region, Chuvashia (0.6% each), the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous District and the Krasnodar Region (0.7% each).

YEREVAN/BAKU, Nov 3 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Armenia’s prime minister called for an international investigation into the presence of “foreign mercenaries” in Nagorno-Karabakh after ethnic Armenian forces said they had captured two mercenaries from Syria.

Azerbaijian has repeatedly denied the presence of foreign combatants in the conflict zone. Its ministry of defence was not immediately available for comment.

BERLIN (Reuters) - European police launched coordinated raids in seven countries on Tuesday as part of a clampdown on online hatred and incitement to violence, the European Union law enforcement agency Europol and German prosecutors said.

In Germany, police searched 83 apartments and other buildings to seize evidence like smart phones and laptops. Prosecutors said 96 suspects are being questioned about hateful posts they made online.

LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices extended their rally on U.S. election day with a 3% gain as financial markets staged a broad recovery, but concerns over surging coronavirus cases around the world capped further gains.

Brent crude futures rose $1.13, or 2.9% to $40.10 a barrel at 1138 GMT on Tuesday, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were up $1.13, or 3.1%, to $37.94 a barrel. Both benchmarks gained nearly 3% on Monday.