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Newcastle United fans say they are "confused" and "heartbroken" following the collapse of the Saudi Arabian-backed takeover. A consortium, led by the country's Public Investment Fund (PIF), agreed a £300m deal to buy the club from Mike Ashley in April but has now pulled out. Greg Tomlinson, from the Newcastle United Supporters' Trust, said "answers are needed from the Premier League". Fellow supporter Michelle George said: "It's left fans devastated." The deal was delayed after being scrutinised under the Premier League's owners' and directors' test. The consortium, which also included PCP Capital Partners and the Reuben Brothers, has pulled out because it is understood the PIF ran out of patience. Magpies supporter George added: "As fans, we are heartbroken. It sounds dramatic but we have suffered for 13 years under Ashley through a lack of interest and investment in the club. "So the fact it played out how it d...

Vietnam has recorded its first Covid-19 fatality, in a devastating blow for a country proud of its zero deaths. The 70-year-old man was from the central city of Hoi An, state media said on Friday. No new infections had been reported for more than three months before an outbreak was reported in the nearby resort of Da Nang earlier this week. Vietnam, which has a population of around 95 million, has reported just several hundred corona-virus cases. Unlike many other countries, Vietnam acted before it even had confirmed cases, closing its borders early to almost all travelers, except returning citizens. Anyone entering the country must quarantine in government facilities for 14 days and undergo testing. And for a while, this approach appeared to be highly effective, with no new local transmissions reported since mid-April. The country received praise for both its timely efforts to contain the virus and for the care it was able to offer a Scottish pilot who spent two months in a coma after...

The president of the African Development Bank (AfDB) has been cleared of corruption charges after a review by an independent panel. The US, one of the bank's biggest shareholders, insisted on a new inquiry in April after an internal review cleared Akinwumi Adesina. Whistleblowers had accused the Nigerian of giving contracts to friends and appointing relatives at the bank. Mr Adesina is set to be re-elected for another five-year term in August. The panel of three experts was made up of Ireland's ex-President Mary Robinson, Gambian Chief Justice Hassan Jallow and Leonard McCarthy, formerly the World Bank's integrity vice-president. They backed the findings of the bank's ethnic's committee, which cleared Mr Adesina of all charges alleged by the whistleblowers in January. "The panel concurs with the committee in its findings in respect of all the allegations against the president and finds that they were properly considered and dismissed by the committee," the...