Friday Briefing: Israel-Hamas truce takes hold after 11 days of fighting

The Reuters Daily Briefing Friday, May 21, 2021 by Linda Noakes Hello Here's what you need to know. Celebrations as Israel-Hamas fighting halts, inside the race to find a COVID-19 treatment pill, and Prince William's astonishing rebuke after BBC cover-up Today's biggest stories A Palestinian woman is kissed by her son after returning to their destroyed house following the Israel-Hamas truce, in Beit Hanoun in the northern Gaza Strip, May 21, 2021. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem MIDDLE EAST An Egyptian-mediated truce between Israel and Hamas took hold after the worst violence in years, with U.S. President Joe Biden pledging to salvage the devastated Gaza Strip and the United Nations urging renewed Israeli-Palestinian dialogue. When the fighting halted, the celebrations began. Unable last week to celebrate Eid al-Fitr, the joyous Muslim feast marking the end of Ramadan, many Gazans took to the street at 2 a.m. as the ceasefire started. A Hamas official said that Israel must end its violations in Jerusalem and address damages from the bombardment of Gaza, warning the group still had its "hands on the trigger". COVID-19 Official tolls showing the number of deaths directly or indirectly attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic are likely to be a "significant undercount" and 6-8 million people may have died so far, the World Health Organization says. The U.N. agency officially estimates that around 3.4 million people have died directly as a result of the pandemic. Drugmakers are racing to produce the first antiviral pill to treat COVID-19, similar to how Tamiflu fights influenza. But after more than a year of the pandemic - and the development of a number of effective vaccines - there is still no easy-to-administer treatment proven to be effective. A new type of coronavirus believed to have originated in dogs was detected among patients hospitalised with pneumonia in 2017-2018, and may be the eighth unique coronavirus known to cause disease in humans if it is confirmed as a pathogen, a study says. FILE PHOTO: Britain's Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, visit Base25 to mark mental health awareness week in Wolverhampton, Britain, May 13, 2021. REUTERS/Molly Darlington/Pool ROYAL ROW The British government vowed to examine how the BBC is run after a damning inquiry into how the broadcaster got its bombshell 1995 interview with Princess Diana and unprecedented criticism from her son Prince William. William accused the BBC of failing his mother and poisoning her relationship with Prince Charles. His brother Harry said he abused alcohol to numb the pain of Diana's death, speaking to Oprah Winfrey in an Apple TV series about mental health. Meanwhile a new poll shows young people in Britain no longer think the country should keep the monarchy and more now want an elected head of state. BUSINESS The U.S. Treasury Department offered to accept a global minimum corporate tax of at least 15% during international negotiations, a rate significantly below its proposed 21% minimum for U.S. multinational firms. Euro zone business growth accelerated at its fastest pace in over three years in May, as a strong resurgence in the bloc's reopening service industry added to the impetus from an already-booming manufacturing sector. Meanwhile, a gauge of British economic growth hit its highest level on record. U.S. officials rushed to defend Amazon's business practices in India after Reuters reported in February that the company had favored certain sellers on its website and bypassed local law that requires foreign e-commerce companies to treat all vendors equally, documents show. Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook will take the witness stand today to defend the App Store, a booming part of the iPhone maker's business that 'Fortnite' maker Epic Games says is a monopoly that Apple abuses. Quote of the day "Weekend headline risk could prompt another bout of extended wealth destruction for the weekend warriors" Jeffrey Halley Senior market analyst at OANDA Bitcoin rebound loses steam on rising regulatory concerns Video of the day Meet 'Sunshine' - born to a mother in a COVID coma Hungarian mother Szilvia Bedo-Nagy only found out she had given birth to baby daughter Napsugar when she was brought out of an induced coma more than a month later, having tested positive for COVID-19 and contracted pneumonia. And finally… Remote Eurovision superfans celebrate despite COVID Eurovision fans stranded in their home countries due to the pandemic are reaching out to friends and online communities to celebrate the event, known for its kitsch pop songs and flamboyant costumes. 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